Have You Heard of the Midnight Channel?
by may yuki
Summary: "It is said that if one would stare at the screen of a turned off television, alone, at midnight during a heavy rain, one could see his or her soul mate." When the Titans hear of the rumor, they can't help but try it out themselves. But what happens when they discover that there is more to it than just discovering your soul mate? Rated T for cursing & violence.
1. Rumors

**I have a feeling that Starfire and Raven wouldn't have a television in their room, but for the sake of this story, there will be some. Sue me. T_T (Please don't actually sue me…It's just something I always say LOL)**

* * *

**On with the story~**

"Have you heard of the Midnight Channel?" An innocent question. A question that was purely asked out of curiosity and to experiment it with others. But no one had expected the consequences that occurred as a result from it.

* * *

**Time: 1500 hours PST**

**Location: Titans' Tower, San Francisco**

"-strikes him out! And we go onto the bottom of the 8th inning with the Angels trailing from a score of-"

"-steals the ball from Johnson and passes it onto-!"

"-pour some water into the po-"

"Man…there's nothing to watch," Beast Boy mutters, leaning back on the couch as he flips through the channels. The Titans have not had any eventful incidents; only a minor robbery here and there are the crimes they've handled. But even then, it's not much since the police can easily handle the common robbers.

"Man, move over," Cyborg demands, jumping over the couch onto the cushions, clutching a CD in his hand.

"What's that?"

"It's the new game that was released today."

"Ooh! Is it Monkey Ninjas VI?"

"Heck yeah it is."

Beast Boy leaps up, grabbing the CD, and inserts it in. The screen immediately loads and the two situate themselves on the couch. "I'm gonna kick your butt," Beast Boy taunts.

"Try me," Cyborg retorts, clutching his controller in front of him.

_Several hours later…_

"What are you doing?" a monotone voice asks as she enters the room and seeing them argue over something. Rain is pitter-pattering against the windows of the tower.

"Hey! I _know_ I pulled off that combo! You probably did something and hacked me before I had the chance!" Beast Boy accuses, gesturing wildly. On the screen, his green ninja - monkey lies on the ground with the words OHKO flashing across the screen. Cyborg's chosen character poses victoriously with a thumbs up and a big grin on his face.

"No way, man! You just didn't get your combo off in time so I just whooped your sorry butt!" Cyborg defends himself.

"That's total bs! I put in the combo and all that happened was the monkey just freaking stood there before you attacked me!"

"Maybe you didn't put in the combo right!"

"I know how to play this game! Don't doubt my skills!"

"You want a rematch, then?!"

"Challenge accepted!" Beast Boy accepts, jumping back to the couch. Before either teen could reach for their controllers, Raven envelops them with her aura and floats them just out of range of them.

"Yo! Give 'em back, Rae!"

"Not if you're just going to pointlessly argue the day away."

"Come on! It's a new game! We just wanna try it out!"

"I'm pretty sure you already had a chance to try it out. And it's time for you to stop before you somehow blow up the tower."

"But that only happened onc-"

"Yeah and whose fault was that?" Raven interrupts.

The pair exchange guilty glances before Cyborg presses the power button on the gaming console. "Now what are we supposed to do?" Beast Boy complains.

"What do you mean?" Raven asks, floating over to the kitchen and pouring some tea into a mug for herself.

"There's barely been anything going on for the past 6 months. _6 months_!" he emphasizes. "I'm bored to death right now!"

"Maybe you should clean your room. Maybe that'll-"

"Don't even joke like that," Beast Boy interrupts.

"I wasn't joking," she retorts, taking a sip from her tea. At this point, Robin and Starfire had walked in, discussing about something.

"Something going on, guys?" Robin asks, noticing the agitation on Beast Boy's face.

"Grass stain's just complaining about how we haven't had anything happen for the past few months, so he's just really bored."

"Hey! Who you callin' grass stain?"

"You, grass stain!" Cyborg retorts as the boys engage in a bickering contest. Robin palms his face, turning back to Starfire.

"So what was that rumor you were talking about, Star?"

"A rumor?" Raven asks, floating over to the pair.

Starfire nods, a knowing smirk on her face and an excited glint in her eyes. "Have any of you heard of…the Midnight Channel?"

Everyone, sans Robin, in the room turn to Starfire, curiosity on their faces. The Midnight Channel?

* * *

**Time: 1500 hours Japan Time**

**Location: Junes, Inaba**

"You ever hear of the Midnight Channel?" a teenage girl with short brown hair wearing a light green, high-collared athletic jacket adorned with several buttons and a dark mini-skirt asks, leaning back against the plastic chair. "You're supposed to look into a TV that's switched off, alone, exactly at midnight on a rainy night. While you're staring at your own image, another person will appear on the screen…And they say that person's your soul mate."

A boy her age, with short and slightly unkempt, fawn-colored hair, sits next to her with his arms crossed over his chest. His pair of headphones rest on his shoulder, on top of his Yasogami High School's uniform. "What? For a second, I thought you were actually gonna say something useful…How can you get all excited over such a childish urban legend like that?" he dismisses the rumor.

"Childish, huh?" She asks, agitated. "You don't believe it, do you?!"

"Of course I don't!"

"Well, it's raining tonight! Let's all try it out – then you'll see!"

The boy looks at her skeptically. "Try it out..? Wait, you haven't even tried it yourself?!" he asks in disbelief. He closes his eyes. "Wow, I'm trying to remember the last time I heard something this stupid…All that aside…you know that "incident" yesterday? You guys think it was murder? Ooh, what if the culprit behind it is still lurking around…?" He snickers, teasing her.

"Sheesh, you shouldn't joke about stuff like that. Now who's the childish one…?" she scolds him. "All I'm saying is, you guys should try it out tonight."

"All right, Chie…I guess we'll try it out," the last teenager speaks up, taking a bite of his steak.

"What? You too, Yu?" the boy in the middle asks in disbelief, turning back to him.

"If it's true, wouldn't it be awesome if it was that Saki-senpai for you, Yosuke?" Chie teases him, a playful smirk egging him on.

Yosuke freezes, sitting in thought. "All right! Let's watch the Midnight Channel tonight!"

* * *

**Time: 2300 hours PST**

**Location: Titans' Tower**

"Midnight Channel?" Cyborg asks.

"Yes, it is a rumor that has been floating around. I was just finishing telling Robin about it when we entered the room."

"If you look into a TV screen that's switched off at night, alone, while it's raining at midnight, someone will appear on the screen," Robin explains, taking it from there.

"L…like a ghost?" Beast Boy asks fearfully, hiding behind Cyborg instinctively.

"Where'd you even hear about this?" Raven asks skeptically, moving the mug to the sink with her powers.

"I was at the mall of shopping when I encountered someone. She had long and wavy gray hair and she suddenly walked up to me."

"That's…suspicious," Raven begins.

"She simply said, 'The Midnight Channel will show your soul mate' and walked away. I tried to look for her, but she somehow disappeared without me noticing. That is why I decided to return and research more about this myth. When I found out what it was, I thought you would all be interested in it so I was heading here when I ran into Robin on the way," Starfire summarizes. Truth be told, she was a bit skeptic and hesitant about this myth and whether or not it was actually true. She didn't expect it to actually be the main topic in the forums in Japan.

Then again, it's not like these discussions are 100% accurate. It could just be a bunch of random teenagers trying to grab the attention of those around them.

"Are you seriously going to try something like this out? It's probably just a childish legend," Raven questions them, doubt clearly on her face.

"Why not? It seems interesting," Cyborg replies, shrugging.

"You can't be serious."

"Come on, Rae. You gotta loosen up once in a while," Beast Boy urges, placing his hand around Raven's shoulder.

She shoves him away, glaring at him. "This is pointless."

"But Raven-" Beast Boy begins to protest.

"I'd rather not." She turns around, floating out of the room.

"Yeesh, what's gotten into her?" Beast Boy asks, confused.

"Maybe she's just afraid of finding out who her soul mate is," Cyborg assumes, glancing at the other two knowingly.

"But, isn't she curious? I know I am," Beast Boy asks, even more confused by Cyborg's glances.

"Well, there's still an hour left. You guys wanna head back to your rooms to watch it?"

"Too bad we can't watch it all together," Cyborg complains.

"If we all have different soul mates, it wouldn't work," Robin reminds him.

Cyborg sighs. "You're right. I'm gonna make a quick snack and I'll head back to my room."

"I'm going back to my room. Gotta clear out the area around my TV so I can see it," Beast Boy says, leaving the room first.

"I shall prepare some food for Silkie as well and then I shall head back," Starfire decides, flying over to the kitchen area and searching for the food.

"What're you gonna do, Rob?"

"I'll head back. I guess I'll read some news here and there before midnight. Wanna meet back here after we've seen it?"

"Are you sure it's safe to discuss who our soul mates are?" Cyborg asks hesitantly.

"We all have different soul mates, after all. I don't think there'd be anything wrong with talking about who they are," Robin argues.

"I guess…"

"See ya in a bit." Robin leaves and heads directly to his room. He stops as he turns the corner, sensing something strange. He reaches into his utility belt and pulls out a bird-a-rang, gripping it tightly. He glances around the corner, seeing Raven on the ground clutching her head. Caution goes out the window as he runs towards her. "Raven!" He kneels down beside her, placing his hand on her back. "Are you ok?"

She shakes her head, clearing away the dizziness that had washed over her. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

He helps her up, letting her lean on him for a moment. "What happened?"

"I…" She pauses, trying to recollect her thoughts. "I was just walking back to my room when this wave of dizziness hit me. I…I heard a voice."

"Was it Trigon? Is he back?" Robin asks, immediately on alert.

"N-no. It wasn't his voice. But I can't figure out who it was."

"They didn't mention their name?"

"I…I think they did, but I'm not sure if I heard it correctly. I heard something like Iza…mi. Izami…?" she mutters unsure of the name.

"Don't think too hard on it. It'll come to you eventually," he comforts her, as she smiles at him.

"Thanks." She steps away from him. "I'll be fine now. I think I just need to head back to my room and rest."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. Don't worry, I'll be fine."

_Later…_

Raven lies on her bed, trying to piece together what she can remember. But it's too hazy for her. She sits up, shaking her head, disappointed in her inability to recall anything. "What were you trying to tell me…?" she mutters to herself. A faint image of a figure clad in white robes dance around in her mind, but she is unable to connect it to anything. She glimpses over to her TV hidden in the corner of her room. She rolls her eyes, unable to believe that she'd actually go through with this childish rumor.

She grabs her clock, looking at the time: _23: 55_. Palming her face, she walks over to her TV, checking to make sure it's unplugged. After confirming it, she sits down at the edge of her bed, staring straight at the TV. She looks down at her clock again: _23:59_. Looking back up at the TV, waiting for something to happen, she can't help but wonder if the others are also doing this.

* * *

Beast Boy collapses on the ground, sighing exhaustedly. His TV is finally clear from the mountain of dirty clothes, the mountain having moved to his bunk bed. He looks up at his clock: _11:59_. He resists the urge to contact any of the other Titans until after the channel appears. After all, it's not like he wants to know if his soul mate is…

He blinks. Ok, maybe he does.

* * *

"Here you go, Silkie," Starfire offers a spoon of the crushed zorkaberries to her mutant, moth larvae pet. He accepts her spoon, instantly devouring the rest of the bowl.

Starfire checks the time on her Mumbo clock: _11:58_. Silkie coos, getting her attention again. "Silkie, would you like to watch the Midnight Channel with me?" He immediately starts bouncing up and down in the high chair, urging her to pick him up.

She carries him out, placing him down on her bed as she checks to make sure the TV is unplugged. "Just one more minute." One more minute before she can confirm whether or not she should continue to pursue her crush.

* * *

Cyborg finishes up his ham sandwich, setting the plate down on a tray nearby his "bed". He doesn't have a TV, per se, but he tries to unplug one of the screens in his room. Who knows, maybe he'll see something on it. It's not like they specifically said only the TV can show the Midnight Channel.

Then again…if he misses it, that'd be embarrassing for him. He grabs the empty plate, heading to the main room. Might as well watch it there and then catch up with the others. He's rather curious about who his soul mate will be. He grins, knowing that there's bound to be relationships after this channel reveals who their soul mates are.

* * *

Robin closes up the manila folder for the umpteenth time, rubbing his eyes. He knows it's been a year since Slade mysteriously disappeared after being resurrected and helping the Titans fight against Trigon. Slade hasn't been confirmed to have appeared anywhere at all, although there were rumors of a one-eyed man that would appear nearby where Titans would arrest a criminal.

But none of these rumors have been confirmed, and that just agitates Robin even more. He needs to know if Slade is going to be another obstacle in peace in Jump City.

His attention shifts over to the clock by his bed: _23:59_. He tosses the folder back onto the table and turns off his TV, unplugging it as well. His ears focus on the rain outside, making sure that it is raining. He refocuses his attention on the TV and it flickers yellow.

He frowns as the screen tries to focus itself. His eyes widen when he realizes that there is a female on the screen, writhing around. But he can't figure out anything beyond that. It finally flickers off and Robin sits there, confusion written across his face.

What the hell just happened?

* * *

Beast Boy leaves his room, running into Starfire. "Star, did you-?" He stops when he realizes how shaken up she seems.

"I cannot believe that my soul mate would be a female. Especially one that I do not even recognize," she mutters to herself.

"What? You got a girl?" Beast Boy asks in disbelief. Is it possible it was the same girl?

"Yes, although I do not recognize her at all."

"What did she look like? Wait, no, let's just go to the main room and talk about it with the others."

Starfire nods in agreement as the two head to the room.

* * *

Cyborg sits on the couch, frozen in disbelief. It worked. The Midnight Channel actually worked! He hears the door behind him slide open and he turns around, seeing Starfire and Beast Boy walking into the room. "Yo! How'd it go? I saw a girl on mine!"

"So did we, but none of us recognize her," Starfire agrees.

"This is getting weird," Beast Boy mutters suspiciously.

"Did you guys see her kinda being tossed around the screen?" Cyborg asks, remembering how painful it looked.

"Yeah…it looked like something was trying to eat her. And she looked really pained…"

"Where is Robin and Raven?" Starfire speaks up, looking around the room.

"Maybe they're still in their rooms?"

"Let's just wait here for them. They're bound to show up eventually," Cyborg suggests. Starfire flies over to the windows, looking out to the rain falling down on the water. She can't help but feel nervous about what could happen.

* * *

Raven stares at her hand, moving the fingers and clenching it into a fist, trying to reaffirm that her hand is still intact. She stares back up at the TV from her position on the ground, noticing that she only sees her reflection left. She had looked at the TV, noticing a girl on the screen flying around in pain. But the image was too grainy for her to figure out what was going on.

As she was going to dismiss it and head back to bed, she was hit with another wave of dizziness and she staggers. This time, she hears another voice.

_I am thou…_

_Thou art I…_

_Thou art the one who opens another door_

The strange dizziness passed and she glanced back up to the TV. She reached out to it, her index finger barely inches away from the screen. She tapped on the screen, ripples appearing on it. Surprised, she tried to push the rest of her hand, feeling a tugging sensation as the TV tried to pull her in. "Whoa!"

She managed to pull herself out before her entire body could go throw and now she sits on the floor, trying to recollect herself.

_Knock-knock-knock!_ She pushes herself up, staggering slightly. "Raven! Are you okay? I heard you scream!" Robin's worried voice is muffled from the other side of the door. She takes a few calming breaths, gliding over to the door. It slides open and she sees Robin clutching the sides of the doorframe, worry and concern on his face.

"It's nothing. I was surprised by what I saw on the Midnight Channel," she dismisses what had happened to her. It's better to not worry Robin even more.

"So you saw the Midnight Channel too?"

"Yeah, did you see your soul mate?"

He nods, "I don't recognize her though. Come on, let's go talk about it with the others. I'm pretty sure they're all there already." He walks ahead of her.

"Yeah…" She follows him, her mind trailing back to when she put her hand into the TV. But she dismisses it. It's not like someone else has that ability as well.

* * *

**I'm aware that there is a time difference between Japan and where the Teen Titans live (I'm assuming Southern California). Which is why I'll have to skip around and such and throwing in flashbacks so it'll all fit together. You'll get what I mean in the next chapter. Also, just to let you know now, I support RobinxRaven so don't expect any RobxStar shipping at the end.**

**If you're curious about my entire OTP for this particular series, feel free to PM me. And if you don't like the OTPs, feel free to leave.**

**Please review! :D**


	2. Teddie and the Other World

**If I messed up the time for Japan and California in any way, feel free to tell me.**

* * *

**Time: 00:00 hours Japan Time**

**Location: Inaba, Japan**

The silver-haired teen that was at the Junes Food Court, Yu Narukami, stares at the TV for another second before turning away. _Maybe Chie was only joking around…_ As soon as that thought passes, the TV behind him flickers. It continuously flickers and switches between static and the scene playing before him. A girl, with long and wavy, beige-colored hair, writhes in pain, swinging to and fro on the screen. One moment she's on the right side of the screen, then static, and then she's on the left.

As he continues to stare at the screen in confusion, a ringing noise attacks his mind as a wave of dizziness envelops him. He hears a deep voice.

_I am thou…_

_Thou art I…_

_Thou art the one who opens the door_…

The ringing intensifies as Yu continues staggering around the room, clutching his head in pain. Suddenly, lightning strikes one of the streetlights, causing a short electric surge. Yu stands up, breathing heavily, as he tries to figure out what had just happened.

He moves his hand forward, poking at the screen. Ripples immediately form on the dark screen and this time, Yu tries to place his whole hand on it. The screen easily gives way and his hand slips in as though he is putting it through water. A tugging sensation pulls his entire body towards the TV and he grunts in surprise, trying to pull back. But the tugging strengthens and sucks his head in as well.

His left hand desperately grasps the edge of the TV and pushes himself backwards, falling down and colliding with the wooden table behind him. He immediately recoils, clutching his head as the throbbing pain slowly subsides.

He hears footsteps outside his door. "Are you okay?" his young cousin, Nanako Dojima, asks.

"Yeah! I'm fine!"

"Okay…" She hesitates for a split second. "Well, good night." The footsteps recede as Nanako returns to her room and Yu turns back to the TV.

_"What just happened…?"_ He wonders, still in disbelief. He blinks again, deciding that mulling things over will just make everything even more confusing. So, he decides to just go to bed and discuss it with the others.

Yu rolls out his futon, lying down to sleep. As his mind begins to fade away into sleep, he can't help but wonder if someone else has this ability.

* * *

**Time: 0730 hours PST**

**Location: Titans Tower**

Raven slowly opens her eyes as the sun begins to peek over the horizon. Pulling her hand out from under the blanket, she stares at it for the umpteenth time. She closes her eyes again, letting her hand drop down beside her as she recalls the conversation she'd had with the rest of the team.

_Earlier…_

"_What took you guys so long?" Beast Boy asked, turning around to face them. Starfire was still looking out the window and Cyborg was sitting in deep thought._

"_Oh, we just finished watching the Midnight Channel," Robin explained._

"_What? But we've been here for a good 5 minutes already!"_

"_I tried to look up some more info on just what the Midnight Channel is," Robin continued, shifting his gaze back to Raven. "And then I heard Raven so I went over to check on her."_

"_Did something happen, friend Raven?" Starfire asked, floating over and checking her dear friend to check for injuries. When she grabbed Raven's left hand, she instinctively recoiled away from Starfire. "Friend Raven?"_

"_I-it's nothing. I was just…a little surprised by what I saw on the television," she stated, her left hand hiding behind her cloak. She can't tell them what happened, not yet. She doesn't want them to have to worry over her._

"_Are you sure?" Starfire hesitantly asked._

"_I'll be fine, Star. No need to worry," she insisted. Starfire nods, but Raven could tell that she was still unsatisfied with what happened. Her left hand continued twitching uncontrollably._

"_Oh yeah! Did you guys get the same person or something? We were talking about it and the person that appeared is apparently the same chick," Cyborg summarized._

"_Long, wavy and light-brown hair?" Robin questioned._

_The trio nodded. "She was being thrown around the screen, wasn't she?" Beast Boy asked, seemingly excited._

"_Yeah, she looked like in pain," Robin muttered. _

"_What do you think was happening? She can't be our soul mate. We don't even know her!"_

"_Maybe…the Midnight Channel is something else?" Raven spoke up, her left hand still hidden in her cloak. All eyes shifted towards her and she almost recoiled, but she shook it off. She's known them too long to be fearful of them! There's no reason for her to be afraid!_

"_What do you mean?" Robin prompted her._

"_Maybe, it was a warning signal. The girl on the screen looked like she's in pain; there's no way it can be something that can be easily dismissed." She paused, noticing that Beast Boy still looked confused. She sighed. "My point is, the Midnight Channel could be something dangerous and we need to figure out what that channel really is before something bad happens."_

_Robin immediately dashed to one of the computer systems by the windows and typed furiously on the keyboard. Cyborg joined him on another system adjacent to him. Within a minute, the two pulled up one forum from Japan. "Star, can you read this?" Robin requested as Cyborg enlarged the page._

_Starfire walked closer to the screen, staring intently at the conversation and rapidly translating everything in her mind. "This forum is talking about the Midnight Channel and what just appeared on the screen. They are rather skeptical and confused over how everyone can all have the same soul mate. Hang on…" She trailed off, focusing on another post, one seconds ago. _

"_Another one showed up?" Beast Boy asked, his eyes beginning to swim as he looked at all of the _kanji_. _

"_Yes, the name of the person is Yosuke Hanamura. He is saying that his soul mate was someone who he knew already. He goes on to talk about how his senpai can't reject him now that he has confirmed who his soul mate is."_

"_What's a senpai?" Beast Boy asked, clueless._

"_It's an honorific that students normally give to their older classmates, meaning Cyborg would be our senpai if we were all in a school together," Raven explained._

"_Oh." He nodded._

"_Someone has replied to him!" Starfire exclaimed, surprised by the rapid debate. "Someone has replied to him and they are saying that the Midnight Channel is a scam and that he should not believe it. He immediately responded, saying that they should not discredit him when he saw it for himself."_

_Robin sighed. "This doesn't seem to be getting us anywhere. Looks like we're going to have to contact the local police there to see if we can investigate whatever it is."_

"_We get to go to Japan again? Sweet!" Beast Boy exclaimed happily, pumping both his hands in excitement. "When are we gonna go? Can we go now?"_

"_Hold on, Beast Boy. We gotta sleep and rest first. Who knows what this could turn out to be?" Cyborg rationally explained. _

"_He is right, Beast Boy. We might encounter something horrible and we would be too tired from the long trip to Japan," Starfire agreed. Beast Boy's ears noticeably drooped in sadness._

"_Don't worry, Beast Boy. We'll all head to Japan tomorrow once I've talked to the police in that area to figure out what's going on and after we get the directions there."_

"_All right, fine. I'll go and pack then!" Beast Boy conceded, running to his room to prepare for the trip. _

"_I'm gonna go charge up for tomorrow and pack a few things," Cyborg stated, leaving the room._

"_Star, do you need to sleep right away?"_

"_No."_

"_Can you help me talk to the local police?" Robin requested._

"_Of course, Robin, but do they not have translators themselves?"_

"_That's right. I'm pretty sure their English is pretty decent. If we hit a snag in communication, I'll let you know tomorrow. Just rest for tomorrow, Star." She nodded and flew out of the room, leaving only Robin and Raven left in the room. She nervously glanced at Robin, who was tracking down the origin of the posts and contacting the police. "Something wrong, Raven?" he decided to speak up. _

"_It's nothing."_

"_Doesn't sound like nothing. I can tell you're scared and nervous about something. You've been hiding your hand the entire time we were in here. Don't forget you and I have a bond."_

"_Robin, even if I told you, you wouldn't believe me…" she trailed off, looking at the ground. She sensed his strong gaze on her and she looked upwards, flinching in surprise. _

"_Try me."_

_She sighed, walking past him and up the stairs to the windows. She extended her left hand towards the window where the TV would be playing and placed her hand on the glass. Nothing happened, and her eyes widened in surprise. She pulled her hand back. "Maybe…it was just a hallucination?" she muttered more to herself._

"_Raven? What happened?" he asked, stepping onto the ledge and standing in front of her._

"_See? Nothing happened. Now stop worrying about me," she redirected the conversation. But she could tell that he, like Starfire, were still unsatisfied with what she said. _

_But luckily for her, he decided to drop it. "All right, but if whatever happened to you does happen to you again, you have to tell us. We don't want you to risk your life for us," he urged, grabbing her left hand and squeezing it for support. _

_Raven looked sideways, a blush creeping up her face, and she pulled her hand back. "Got it." She descended the set of steps and headed towards the door. "I'm gonna go and rest for tomorrow." The door slid open and she seemingly glided out of the door before Robin could say anything._

_Her left hand wouldn't stop twitching_.

Raven sighs, palming her face with her right hand. Maybe she's just being extremely paranoid. As the sun continues to rise, she climbs out of her bed and walks over to the TV. She has to confirm that she's been hallucinating, otherwise, she'd go mad with the possibility that she could put her body into a freaking TV!

Extending her hand once more, she places her palm on the screen. The screen gives way again and she accidentally falls forward. She is pulled into the television before she even has time to react.

* * *

**Time: Unknown**

**Location: Unknown**

_Thud!_ Raven's back collides with the ground, her breath getting knocked out of her. She sits up after confirming that nothing in her body is broken in any way. Fog covers the entire area around her, hindering her eyesight. She looks around, blinking several times to ascertain just where she is. "Where…am I?" She takes a few steps forward, but the persistent fog prevents her from truly discerning where she is.

Deciding that getting out of the fog is her first priority, she flies up and starts heading in one direction. Noticing that she has yet to even notice anything familiar, agitation and anxiety begins to build up within her and she picks up speed. "Where the hell am I? Where is everyone?" she mutters to herself, fearful of what she might encounter. Suddenly, the fog clears in the blink of an eye and she descends, landing on pavement. In the sky, a strange pattern of red and black stripes continues to ripple as she looks around. "It looks like a…shopping district."

She takes a few steps, noticing how decrepit and run-down the stores look. "Is this recent or is this a ghost town…?" She continues looking around, standing in front of a small open-air shop called Souzai Daigaku. But no one seems to be manning it. "This doesn't look run down…so…maybe this is recent?"

She hears voices up ahead in the distance and she runs over there, stopping when she sees someone. She hides behind a nearby streetlight, peering over to the side with trepidation. She lets out a gasp when she realizes who it is: the girl with long, wavy hair from the Midnight Channel is kneeling on the ground. Standing in front of her…is a girl that looks exactly like her!

Confused, Raven continues watching the strange scene play out in front of her. The girl standing has eyes that seem are glowing yellow and when she speaks, a chill runs up Raven's spine. Whatever this girl is, she's bad news for the one on the ground. "**HanAmURa-cHan iS SucH a pAiN iN tHe aSs. HE dOeSn'T rEaLizE thAt I'm jUsT bEInG nIcE tO hIm bEcaUse hE's tHe manAgeR'S son. HE's sUcH a dIp.**"

The one on the ground mutters to herself, "Th-that's not true. I never thought that about Hanamura-chan."

"**HE tAkeS tHe wRonG way. IT's So LaMe. AnD wHo cArEs aBoUT JUneS, aNywAys? mY ParEnTs' SToREs aRE rUiNEd aND theY fREakIng haTE mE. leT's nOT fORGet thAt tHe neIGHborS TalK aBouT mE BEhInD mY bACk.**"

"What are you talking about? You're completely wrong!" the one on the floor slowly pushes herself up in rebellion and denial.

Her clone continues, ignoring everything she's saying. "**I jUSt wish eVEryThinG wOuLD disappear!**"

Now, the girl, Raven finally remembers the name, Saki, stands up, albeit staggering, and yells back in defiance. "That's not true at all! None of that is true! You're not me! I refuse to accept the fact that you're me!"

Raven looks away as an unexplainable sense of malice fills the area. The yellow-eyed clone releases a mirthful laugh, full of excitement and a feeling of imminent death. "**ThAt'S RIGHT!** **sAY iT aGaiN! I dARe yOU!**"

"You're not me! You're anything _but _me!" Raven turns back over in time to see the clone convulsing violently. Saki steps back in fear as the clone darkens into a large tendril of darkness.

"**YOu'Re RIgHT. I Am ME, noW. AnD I'M noT YoU ANYmoRE!**" The tendril of darkness leaps towards her, stabbing her through her abdomen. Raven stares at the scenery in front of her, remembering instantly that this is the scene that she and the others had witnessed earlier on the screen.

The shadow soon consumes Saki, darkness completely enveloping her. Raven runs out of her hiding spot as she tries to save the girl. "Azarath, Metrion, Zin-!" Her hands extend in front of her, but her powers are nowhere to be seen. "_What's going on? Why are my powers failing now? They were working just fine earlier!_"

"Help! Someone! Please!" Saki's cries are heard from underneath the shadow, but soon, she is silenced. Raven retreats a few steps back as the shadow disappears, taking Saki with her. After standing there in mute shock, Raven turns tail and runs for her life out of the area and back into the fog. Sweat pours down her face as adrenaline courses through her body, urging her to get away from whatever the danger is.

"_This isn't good! I have to find a way back and tell the others what happened! This isn't just some harmless rumor! People can die from this! Saki must have been thrown into the TV and then after a short amount of time, darkness will come and kill them! I have to escape before I'm next!"_ Running blindly, she fails to pay close attention to her surroundings and she collides into something soft and…furry?

"Whoa!" The object rebounds and skids backwards a few feet as Raven falls over onto her back. She instantly sits up, ready to fight whatever she just ran into. But she shifts out of her defensive position when she realizes that it's some sort of…bear?

The bear pushes itself up, standing on its back paws. It has blue fur and wears a red and white jumpsuit-like outfit with three red buttons descending the front of it. There is a zipper going around its entire neck and its big eyes remind her of googly eyes. A tuft of blue hair spikes itself at the top of its head and its ears seem to be twitching every few seconds. "Who are you?" it asks.

Wait a minute. It can talk?! Raven steps backwards, hesitantly, unsure what to do. "Um…"

"Come on, I asked you a question. Who are you and what are you doing here? Don't you realize how dangerous it is here?"

"Of course I realize how dangerous it is! I just saw someone get smothered by darkness!" she retorts, unable to control herself for once. Raven gestures behind her, where she had come from.

"Wait a minute! You saw someone get killed by Shadows?" It immediately redirects the subject.

"Listen you, I just saw someone get killed and I might be next. Do you know the way out of here?" she asks, grabbing the bear by its shoulders. She can't help but feel vulnerable without her cloak. After all, it's not like she actually expected to end up where she is now.

"I can show you the way out, but you have to tell me what you saw! I sensed two people in here and one of them just disappeared when the fog cleared! Are you the reason they've disappeared?" it interrogates her.

"No, you stupid bear! I stuck my hand through my TV and then I was sucked into whatever the hell this place is. And I was trying to get out of the fog when it suddenly cleared up and I was at some shopping district. I saw a girl that had appeared on the TV the night before and she was attacked by something after she denied herself to whatever it was."

"This isn't good. If more people keep appearing, they'll be killed by their Shadow. I have to let you out now before you become a victim. The fog's all gone now and you must escape before it's too late." It pulls itself away from her and taps its foot on the ground twice. A stack of old TVs appears beside him. "If you go through here, you should be able to return back to your world." Raven steps forward, inspecting the TVs.

She notices flickering on the upper screen as people continuously filter back and forth. The one at her eye level shows her room. "What's the one on the to-?" Before she can finish her question, the bear gives her a push. "Hey! What're you doing?"

"Hurry up and get out! I don't want you to die either!"

"Wait! What's your name?" she asks as her hand slips through the screen.

The bear's agitated face relaxes into a simple smile. "I'm Teddie." With that, the tugging sensation strengthens and Raven is pulled through the screen.

* * *

**Time: 1150 hours**

**Location: Raven's Room**

Raven falls out of her TV, her upper body on the ground and her lower body in the air, a part of her right foot still in the TV. Her door slides open immediately and Robin runs in with a staff in his hand. "Who's ther-!" he stops. "Raven? You're back!" He runs towards her, but stops short when he sees her foot in the TV. "What the-?" She rights herself, pushing forward with her arms and she can feel her foot slipping out of the TV. She pants, trying to calm herself down after what just happened. Robin offers his hand after she gathers her bearings. "You okay?"

She takes his offered hand and staggers over to the bed. "Yeah, thanks."

"What happened? Did you go somewhere?"

"How long was I gone?"

"You've been gone for 3 hours," he answers.

"I was gone that long? Guess time in that place moves differently," she mutters to herself.

"What place?"

"Well, remember when I was trying something out last night?" He nods in confirmation. "I tried it again this morning and I didn't actually expect it to work. So, I wasn't ready and when my hand slipped through the screen, I-"

"Wait, slipped through the screen?" he asks in disbelief.

"I told you that you wouldn't believe me." She rises from her bed, brushing him aside, and stands in front of the TV. "Look." She extends her hand for what could be the millionth time and places it on the screen. She braces herself as her hand slips through. She refuses to go back there alone and die.

"What the hell?" Robin is by her side in an instant, unable to believe that her hand so easily slipped through. She pulls her hand out and he immediately replaces it with his own hand.

"Wait, you might-!" But her warning is cut short when she realizes that Robin's hand isn't being pulled in. "You're not…"

"It's apparently something only you can do," Robin acknowledges, pulling his hand away. "How'd you even get that power?"

"I…I'm not even sure myself. I just felt an urging to reach out to the girl on the screen…and when I poked the screen, ripples formed across the screen. I tried it out and-"

"Was this why you screamed last night?"

She hesitates again before nodding. "I didn't want you guys to worry about me so I didn't say anything." _Or for you to doubt me_.

"How come it didn't work earlier?"

"I'm not sure myself. Maybe because it's not really considered as a TV?"

"Possibly. What did you see while you were in there?"

Raven recollects her thoughts, her mind momentarily recalling Saki's death. She shakes it off, hoping she won't choke up about it when she gets to that part. "After I fell in, I noticed a lot of fog. I didn't know where I was so I tried to wander around for a bit when the fog suddenly cleared up. I found myself in a shopping district that was probably in Japan on account of all the _kanji_ that I saw."

"And then?"

"I looked around for a bit when I heard voices nearby. I followed the direction of the voice, but I wasn't sure what would happen so I hid behind a street light and I saw the girl that appeared on the screen."

"She fell into the TV too?"

"I'm not sure. But I don't think she fell in by accident. Anyways, she was talking to someone and when I turned around, I saw that she was talking to a yellow-eyed clone of hers."

"Yellow-eyed?" he asks skeptically.

Raven nods. "The clone seemed to be saying a lot of things that Saki was denying. And when she said that the clone 'wasn't her', the clone changed into tendrils of darkness and attacked her."

"Like what we saw last night!" Robin realizes with a jolt. His grip tightens on the staff.

"I tried to help her, but for some reason, my powers suddenly wouldn't work. The darkness disappeared and I ran for it before the same thing could happen to me. I should have stepped in sooner," she mutters regretfully. "Because I was so panicked, I ran at full speed and I collided with something."

"Something?"

"Yeah, it was a bear with blue fur. He called himself…Teddie."

"Teddie?"

"I argued with him for a bit on the situation and he urged me to escape before the 'Shadows' came and attacked me."

"So anyone that appears would be attacked?" Robin mutters, trying to piece everything together.

"That's what I think."

She pauses remembering something Teddie had said. _"The fog's all gone now and you must escape before it's too late!"_

"I think…when the fog clears up…that's when whoever's in the TV dies." Robin looks at her skeptically. "The moment the fog cleared up, that Saki girl was attacked by whatever it was. And Teddie was insisting that I leave because the fog's gone. He said that I have to escape before it's too late."

"Before whatever that darkness is comes and kills you next," Robin realizes.

"I think he called them Shadows. So these Shadows…must have formed from people's thoughts."

"What makes you think that?"

"Well, the clone Saki, let's call her Shadow Saki for now, was saying a bunch of things that only the real Saki would now. But those facts are probably things that Saki herself has denied because she was trying to tell Shadow Saki that none of the things she had just stated are true. The moment she denied Shadow Saki's existence, that's when she transformed into those tendrils and attacked her," she deduces.

"That could have been you if you didn't run into Teddie," Robin states matter-of-factly. "Whoever or whatever that bear really is, he saved your life."

"We should go back when the fog comes back over there."

"But how would we know? Besides, we can't do anything for a while. There's a dense fog around us now," Robin regrettably comments, looking out her window.

Caught up in the excitement, Raven hadn't noticed her surroundings. She steps away from the TV and situates herself in front of her window. "But it was clear this morning!"

"When I came in to check on you, that was when the fog started rolling in."

"When was that?"

"Around…9," he replies, after a moment of thinking.

"Is it possible…?" she trails off, not sure.

"What is?"

"What if…the fog being here has something to do with the lack of fog over in the TV world? What I'm saying is that, when it clears up over there, if anyone is in there, they'll die and if you think about it, where does the fog go? The fog from the TV world must have somehow filtered itself to over here."

Before either teens could continue the discussion, Starfire peeks her head through the door. "Robin."

"What's wrong?"

"Beast Boy just discovered news from Japan about a missing high school student. They had a picture of the student and she looks very similar to the girl we saw last night on the Midnight Channel," she summarizes.

"What? But she's-"

"Show us at the main room," Robin orders as he follows Starfire. Raven decides to not say anything for now before they figure out just what the hell is going on.

_"Don't the police realize she's dead now? Why are they still saying she's missing?"_

* * *

**Time: 1210 hours**

**Location: Main Room, Titans Tower**

"-ki Konishi, age 17. She was last seen leaving her parents' liquor store and she did not come back for the rest of the day. If you have any information, please contact the Inaba po-"

Robin switches off the TV after replaying the news report. "Raven, didn't you say…?"

"I'm positive that was her. I don't want to admit it, but that was Saki that I saw."

"You saw Saki somewhere? Where? We have to go rescue her!" Beast Boy exclaims.

Raven closes her eyes tightly, forcing herself to drive out the memory of Saki's death out of her mind. She feels someone's hand on her shoulder. She opens her eyes and turns around to see Robin gripping her shoulder tightly in support. He seems to be seeking her consent for him to tell the others what she had seen. She nods. "It's too late to save her. She's dead."

That got their attention. Cyborg looks away from the computer screen, Starfire stops preparing food for Silkie, and Beast Boy freezes up. "What are you talking about? She's only missing. There's no way she can-"

"I saw her die," Raven speaks up. Robin's grip on her shoulder tightens.

"What are you talking about? And where were you for the past 3 hours?" Beast Boy asks, beginning to get agitated.

"It'd be easier if we showed you. Raven, try it here. If it doesn't work…we'll have to go to your room," Robin hesitantly states, knowing how much Raven dislikes people going into her room.

Without a word, she flies over to the windowpane that normally projects shows. Unsure about what would happen, she still extends her hand out and this time, it goes in. Starfire, Beast Boy, and Cyborg all jump at seeing their friend's hand slip into the TV. "What the-?"

"Yo! What the heck?"

"Friend Raven, are you showing us some new magic?"

"It's not magic," she replies, her hand still in the screen. "It's more like I can travel to another dimension."

"Don't you already do that?" Cyborg asks.

"In case you didn't notice, I don't need any incantation whatsoever to do this." She feels a slight tugging and she immediately pulls her hand out before it can suck her back in. She might not be lucky and have Teddie help her escape again like last time.

"Dude, that's so cool!" Beast Boy excitedly squeals, leaping towards her and tries to stick his hand through the screen. "Huh? How come I can't do it?"

"For some reason, only Raven can do it."

"I don't know why either. But I heard a voice after I left this room last night. Then, as I was watching the Midnight Channel, I heard another voice. And I tried to reach out to the girl on the screen when my hand got pulled in. Before my entire body could be pulled in, I managed to force myself back out," she summarizes for them.

"And this morning, she tried it again and she accidentally fell in as a result. While there, she tried to find a way out when the fog in there suddenly cleared up. She was suddenly in a Japanese shopping district and that was where she met Saki," Robin continues for her. She nods in gratitude, noticing that his hand still hasn't left her shoulder. "Another being was there, and Raven calls it the Shadow Saki."

"Shadow Saki?" Beast Boy asks, becoming even more confused by the second.

"I believe the Shadow is something like the hidden side of a person. The side that they want to show people, but they're afraid to. Anyway, the Shadow continued stating facts that the real Saki has thought of, but she strongly rejected the Shadow. As a result, the Shadow transformed, attacked, and killed Saki."

"Why didn't you do anything?"

"My powers wouldn't work, Beast Boy. Something about that other place gives me a bad feeling. I think it can negate all of our powers."

"How the hell is that even possible?"

"I don't know! I was lucky to escape myself!" she yells, agitated. "When I realized I couldn't do anything, I fled. After a while of running, I ran into something and it turned out to be a resident of that other world."

"And you somehow managed to escape from it?"

"No, he actually helped me escape. He called himself Teddie and he managed to somehow procure small TVs stacked upon one another. The one at my eye-level was the one that I used to escape," she finishes her explanation, sinking down onto the couch with an exhausted sigh.

"We have to go to Inaba and tell them about Saki. I managed to get in contact with the police station there and they said they'll prepare some accommodations for us at an inn in the town. Are you guys all packed up and ready to go?" Robin asks as he grabs a small red backpack that most likely only continues extra weaponry and extra sets of his uniform.

"Got everything I need right here," Cyborg pats a black duffel bag by his side. Beast Boy sits atop three luggage, all teeming with what one could say is his entire room packed up.

Starfire pats her alien luggage as it rests atop the table in front of the couch. The rest of the team still can't figure out how such a small alien can fit all of her clothing.

"I don't need to pack," Raven states, taking a few calming breaths.

"We'll go when you're ready, Raven," Robin comforts her.

"We can go now," she suggests. "The flight is roughly 11 hours even with our T-ship so by the time we arrive, it'd be the afternoon over in Japan."

"Are you sure you'll be-"

"_Yes_, Robin," she emphasizes. "Trust me. I'll be okay." She tries to give him a reassuring smile, which only causes him to worry more. But he grudgingly accepts that she does have a point about the timing.

"All right." He stands up, heading out the door. "Let's go."

* * *

**The biggest struggle was finding a good spot to end the chapter in. I felt that ending it around the time Raven returned from the Shadow world would be too short so I tried to extend it which led to this ^^;**

**Anyways, please review! They motivate me to work harder and upload faster ^_^**


	3. My Persona

**I did the math for when the Titans would arrive in Inaba, if you think about it, they're in a special type of plane so they could've appeared earlier. I'm assuming that they arrived around the time Yu and Yosuke were discovering Persona. Also, I am now adding dates both for you readers and for myself so I know if I messed anything up.**

**On with the story~**

* * *

**Time: 1550 hours Japan time**

**Date: April 14, 2011**

**Location: Inaba, Japan**

"Well, miss, might I suggest this one over here? It's the newest model, just released this spring…" Yosuke introduces a flat-screen TV for Chie, speaking as though he is communicating with a customer.

Chie's mouth opens in shock. "Wha- that's not cheap at all! There's got _way_ too many zeroes!" she protests.

"I should've asked what you meant by 'cheap' right off the bat," Yosuke regrettably comments.

"You've got connections, right?" she asks slyly. "C'mon, hook me up!"

"You know I can't do that…" He focuses onto another TV. "Hey, how about this one over here? It's a display unit. It's a little old, but…" Watching the two converse, Yu begins to wonder if what he experienced last night really was just a dream. He reaches forward, placing his palm on the screen. It immediately gives way, ripples spreading across the screen. Chie and Yosuke continue their conversation when Yosuke turns to him with a question.

"Oh yeah, Yu, what kind of TV do you-" He freezes up, shock on his face.

Confused, Chie asks, "Huh? Something wrong, Yosuke?" She follows his gaze and sees Yu's hand in the TV.

"I-is his arm…in the TV…?" he asks in disbelief again.

"Whoa…is that some kinda…new model? L-like with a new function?"

"Hell no!"

The two of them run over, trying to figure out what happened. "You gotta be kidding me…Did you really stick your hand through the screen?" Chie asks, still in disbelief.

"Oh man…This is for real…That's some magic trick, man! So how's it work, huh? What's the magician's secret?!" Yu stares at their astonished looks before turning back to the TV, remembering how his head had almost fallen in. He places his knee on the stand and pokes his head in. Next to him, he can hear Chie and Yosuke begin to panic even more. "H-hey, don't do that! What're you doing?"

"Oh my god!"

Yu notices that it's nothing but empty space in here. "I only see empty space in here, guys."

"Wh-what do you mean, 'inside'?!"

"Wh-what do you mean, 'empty space'?!"

"Feels kinda spacious in here," Yu comments, seemingly oblivious to their panic.

"Wh-what do you mean, 'spacious'?!"

"I mean, what's going on?!" Chie asks, becoming more agitated by the second.

Suddenly, Yosuke starts hopping on his feet. "Holy crap…I-I think this is all too much for my bladder…"

"What the…are you gonna pee your pants?!" Chie questions.

"I've been holding it all day…I-I haven't had the chance to go…" Yosuke explains. "Arrgh…can't…hold it…anymore!" He runs for the restroom before turning back in an instant. "Shit! Customers! They're coming!"

"What?! But we've got a guy half stuck in the TV here! Wh-what're we gonna do?" The pair start panicking, running around the area before they collide with each other.

They stumble and crash into Yu. "What the- W-Wai- WHOA!"

* * *

**Time: 1600 hours Japan Time**

**Location: ?**

They fall through the TV and soon, they land with varying grunts. Yu instantly sits up, looking around as Yosuke sits up, rubbing his lower back. "Ow…I think I landed right on my wallet."

Chie pushes herself up as well. "Man, where the heck are we?" All they can see is an incessant fog. "What is this place? Some kind of place inside Junes?"

"Hell no it isn't," Yosuke retorts as they stand up. "I mean, we fell through a TV! Actually, uh…what _is_ going on here?"

"So…uh…we're still alive…right?"

"Are you guys okay?" Yu asks, trying to calm them down.

"I think my butt's cracked now…" Yosuke mutters.

"Of course it is!" Chie retorts mercilessly.

Yosuke looks around. "Whoa!"

"Wh-what now? Did you wet your pants?"

"No, stupid! Look around!"

Around them, they see beams and lights in the distance as though they are on stage, ready to perform. "Is this…a studio? All this fog…or is it smoke? There's no place like this in Inaba, is there?"

"Hell no," Yosuke replies with a hushed voice. "But man…this place is huge…"

"What're we gonna do?" Chie asks, looking at Yu for answers.

"Let's look around."

"Huh? B-but…Look, we need to get home and- Huh…?" Chie scans the area. "Wait a minute…which way did we come in from? I don't see a way in or out!"

"What? Th-that can't be right! H-how could that be?" By now, the fear is seeping into their voice.

"I don't know! Don't ask me! I can't take this anymore! I wanna go home!"

"Okay…so how?"

"Let's look for a way out," Yu suggests, hoping it's enough to calm their nerves.

"Y-yeah, an exit! We need to find one! Let's calm down and think about this." After a pause, he continues, "All right, so we need to find a way out."

"Is there really a way outta here…?" Chie dejectedly mutters.

"We got in…so we must be able to get out somehow."

"That's true, but…"

Yosuke attempts to placate her. "If there's no exit, we're trapped. So, let's cross our fingers and look around."

They choose one path and continue following it until they appear in a room that resembles an apartment complex. They climb up the stairs before they reach one hall with a strange portal at the end. The fog seems to have thickened. "What is this place…? It feels different from where we were before."

"It looks like we're in some kinda building, but…damn, this fog's so thick, I can hardly see."

"Are you sure we're not wandering farther away?"

"I can't be positive, but we've gotta trust our instinct a little."

"I know…" Yu glances at the portal, realizing that the only way to continue is forward and into that strange entrance. They follow him and they are instantly transported into a bedroom.

There is a double-size bed in the corner with a white comforter laid out on it, a small plant in a pot next to it. There is a bookcase on the wall with a few books leaning on the side.

"Hey…is it me or is the fog lighter here?" He pulls out his phone to try and contact someone, but the hope is dashed away in an instant. "No service. What a surprise."

"Can't you guys slow down a little? It's hard enough to see where you're going…" Chie requests as she walks into the room. The two finally turn around and their eyes widen. Chie follows their gaze and instinctively takes a step back towards the boys. "Huh? What the-?" There is a closet next to the door and the posters are scattered around the room, red and yellow paint also splattered onto the wall. Shreds of paper spread out on the ground. "It's a dead end! There's no exit!"

"It keeps getting creepier and creepier the further we go…" Suddenly, Yosuke starts hopping in place again. "Argh! I can't hold it any longer! My bladder's gonna explode!"

He runs over to a corner. "Yosuke! What're you doing?" A zipper being unzipped can be heard.

"I gotta let it out before I piss my pants!" he rationally explains to her.

"You're going here? Oh, you've gotta be kidding…"

"T-turn around! I can't go if everyone's watching…" Their gazes continue to bore down on him. He lets out a sigh of exasperation. "I can't do it! It's all your fault if my bladder bursts!"

"Like I care!" Chie retorts as Yosuke zips his pants again. "Anyway, what's with this room? Check out these posters. Their faces are all cut out. Someone must really hate this person."

Yosuke notices a chair next to him and he looks up, seeing a red noose. "Dude…this chair and rope…That kind of arrangement is never good. It's tied in a noose…is this a scarf?"

"C'mon, let's go back to where we came from and look somewhere else for an exit," Chie suggests. Yu and Yosuke agree, and soon, they are back at where they had landed. "Whew…we finally made it back here." She notices a silhouette in front of them. "Wait. What's that?"

Yosuke jumps. "Th-there's something over there!" The silhouette walks towards them, a strange noise coming from its footsteps. As it steps closer, the trio realize that it's some sort of animal in a red jumpsuit.

"What is this thing? A monkey? A bear…?" Chie asks, tentatively walking towards it.

"Wh-what in the world?"

"Th-that's what I wanna know! Who are you guys?"

Chie lets out a gasp. "It talked! What are you? You wanna fight?"

The bear cowers in fear. "D-don't yell at me like that…It's already bad enough that there was another person that yelled at me earlier…"

"What are you?" Yu asks, trying to start a normal conversation with it.

"I'm a bear. Can't you tell? I live here by myself," he matter-of-factly states. "I've always lived here. It doesn't have a name."

"You…live here?" Yosuke asks.

"If I was you guys, I'd hurry back to the other side. Someone's been throwing people in here. It's a big headache. Not to mention, people are also apparently stumbling into here."

"Huh? Throwing people in? What're you talking about? And what do you mean, 'more people'?"

"I dunno who's doing it! I just want them to think before they go doing things like that!"

"Hey, what's your problem? What gives _you_ the right to yell at us like that? What _are_ you? Where are we? What the heck's going on here?" The bear runs over to Yu and hides behind him.

"I already told you. A-anyways, you should hurry back," the bear urges them again.

"What it comes down to is, you want us to get outta here, right? Well, so do we! We just don't know how, dammit!" Yosuke complains.

"That's why I'm saying I'll let you out!" The bear retorts.

"Like I keep saying, we don't know where the frickin' exit-" He trails off when he realizes what the bear had offered. "Wait, what?" The bear simply taps his left foot twice and a stack of TVs appear in front of them. "What the hell?"

"Wh-where did those TVs come from?"

As the three of them inspect the front of the TV, the bear walks behind them. Yu notices that at the top TV, there is a dark bedroom. The headboard of the bed seems to be shaped like a hood. Before he can ask the bear anything else, the bear pushes them in. "Okay, now go, go, get outta here! I'm a busy bear!"

"What's going on now? Whoa! Hey, what're you doing?" Chie asks, stumbling as the bear shoves them.

"S-stop pushing!" The three of them fall through the TV, leaving the bear alone.

As the ripples slowly decrease, the bear turns away. "People seriously need to stop coming here. Shadows are gonna attack them soon."

* * *

**Time: 1830 hours Japan Time**

**Date: April 14, 2011**

**Location: Dojima Residence, Inaba**

"Hey, welcome home," Dojima greets Yu as he walks into the house. He still feels a bit sluggish after today's events. He slumps down on the pillow, two bowls of noodle on the table. Chopsticks are placed on the lids of the bowls to prevent heat from escaping. Dojima looks down, seeming to be at war with a decision. "Uh-hmm, well, I doubt you'd know…" he trails off, getting Yu's attention.

"Did something happen?" Dojima's response is a sigh.

"Have you heard anything about a student named Saki Konishi?"

"She wasn't at school today."

"Oh, I see…To be honest, we got a call from her family. She's disappeared. We've got people looking for her, but she hasn't been found yet…" He sighs again, oblivious to Yu's surprise. "Work just keeps piling up…"

The rest of the night continues with a weather report on the strange fog that has been filtering into the town.

* * *

**Time: 1700 hours Japan time**

**Date: April 15, 2011**

**Location: In an open field outside of Inaba**

The T-ship descends upon the open field and Robin sees a man with short, cropped hair looking up at them, a cigarette dangling out of his mouth. He is wearing a dark gray collared shirt with pulled up sleeves, a loose, light red necktie and a brown belt with a metal buckle as well as a pair of dress pants along with dark brown shoes. A black jacket can be seen over his shoulder. He must be the detective that agreed to meet them to bring them up to speed on the situation.

Rain continues pounding down on the area.

Another man, probably the detective's partner, is standing closely behind him with an umbrella over the both of them. He has unkempt black hair, and gray eyes. He is wearing a black suit with a white long-sleeved shirt, a crooked red tie, and brown field boots.

All of the Titans leave the T-ship, standing beneath the hull for protection from the rain. The detective and his partner greet the Titans, the partner closing up the umbrella.

"Name's Ryotaro Dojima. I heard a lot about you from the mayor of Tokyo after your little adventure," the detective states.

"It's good to meet you, Mr. Dojima," Robin greets, shaking his hand.

"So you're the Teen Titans, huh? The way you took down Daizo was pretty cool, especially how you figured out how he became the hero of Tokyo in the first place. Although…" The partner steps slightly forward, comparing his height to Beast Boy, who only goes up to his chest. "I thought you'd be taller."

Dojima turns and smacks his partner. "Shut up, Adachi!"

"Ow…" Adachi clutches his head in pain.

"I'm sorry about what my idiot partner said. Well, the police station is kinda far and I don't think you want to walk in the rain."

"It's no big deal," Robin states. "Are you sure you'll fit us into your car?"

"I'm pretty sure you all can-"

"I can teleport us all to the station. I noticed the sign as we passed by the town so I know where to go," Raven offers.

"Huh? But what about his car?" Beast Boy asks, pointing at the van parked at the road.

"Ah, don't worry about it! I'll just have Adachi drive it back!"

"Huh? Sir, are you sure you can-"

Dojima hits him again. "Be quiet! These five saved Tokyo! I trust them. Now go and drive my car back to the station. And I better not see a scratch on it!"

Adachi rubs his head again, and walks away, grumbling under his breath. "Are you ready?" Robin asks as Adachi's retreating figure enters the car.

"As ready as I'll ever be," Dojima answers. Raven's eyes glow, her aura enveloping all six of them in her powers. In an instant, they are at the entrance of the station. "Come on in."

Dojima leads the team through the station into his office. A wooden desk is situated in the middle of the room, with papers strewn about the table. A single manila folder rests at the center of the table. A simple rolling chair situates itself behind the desk and a trash can filled to the brim rests next to the table. There are pictures of Nanako on his desk, and one picture frame faced down. Mug shots of convicted criminals adorn the wall next to the entrance. Filing cabinets line the wall on the other side of the door, some slightly open due to the excess amount of files. A large window is behind his desk, the blinds closed. A single light shines right above his desk.

"And I thought Beast Boy's room was messy," Raven mutters under her breath.

Dojima walks behind his desk and picks up the manila folder, pages upon pages stuffed into it. "This is all the information of the case you were interested in. It was only half that amount a few days ago until a new victim showed up." He offers it to Robin, who is sitting on one of the chairs in front of Dojima's desk. Starfire and Raven are sitting by his side on the other two chairs while Beast Boy looks at the pictures around the room, Cyborg keeping a close eye on him.

Robin accepts the folder, flipping through it. "Mayumi Yamano, female, DOB: February 18, 1978. DOD: morning of April 12, 2011. COD: unknown poison. She was the center of attention after her affair with politician, Taro Namatame, came to light after Misuzu Hiragi went public about it. She was discovered hanging upside down a TV antenna by a student from the local Yasogami High School. The student stated that she had no connections to the victim and was simply walking home early when she saw the body," Robin reads the brief report.

He flips the page, his eyes widening, something Dojima doesn't fail to pick up. "Something wrong?" Dojima asks. Raven glances at the file and the next victim's photo, freezing up as well.

Trying to calm his nerves, Robin carefully reads the next information. "S-Saki Konishi." Cyborg and Beast Boy turn to Robin after hearing the name. "Female, DOB: March 13, 1994. DOD: morning of April 15, 2011." He grips the folder, becoming even more confused. Raven had seen Saki die two days earlier. This doesn't make any sense! "COD: unknown poison that also killed Mayumi Yamano. She was discovered hanging upside down a power line pole. She was the one that had reported Mayumi Yamano's death. There is suspicion that she was killed to be silenced after discovering the body."

"Robin, was she not-?" Starfire's question is cut off by Raven's gaze. Starfire realizes immediately that if they try to mention anything about how they had seen Saki on the TV, they'll be ridiculed.

"Is there something wrong, Robin?" Dojima asks, as Robin continues skimming the rest of the information. Two pictures slip out. He picks them up, staring at it. One shows a boy with unkempt fawn-colored hair and another photo shows a boy with short, gray-colored hair.

"Who are these two?" Robin asks, passing the photos to Dojima. Dojima scowls.

"Why are there pictures of…?"

"Are you affiliated with one of them?" Raven asks, her tone short of accusatory.

"They're not responsible or related to the murders in any way. They are students in the 2nd year at Yasogami High School, where Saki Konishi used to go to. That's it."

"You didn't answer her question," Cyborg asks, crossing his arms.

"Are you accusing me of having something to do with this? I'm the one investigating this, dammit!"

"Look, Mr. Dojima. The last time we came here, the detective we talked to turned out to be the villain behind everything. So forgive us if we're a bit suspicious," Robin attempts to placate both Dojima and his team.

"I can assure you I'm only the detective investigating the incidents. I know just as much as you do, which is nothing but the surface of this entire thing."

Even though Beast Boy and Cyborg are looking at him skeptically, Starfire and Robin seem to have relaxed and trust him again. Raven, meanwhile, is looking at the photos and the folder. She looks, in particular, at the photo of the gray haired boy. "Yu…" she mutters, and Dojima shifts his attention to her. "Narukami…"

"You know him?" Dojima asks.

Raven shakes her head. "I don't know him, but the name just came to me."

Dojima suspiciously looks at her. "Mr. Dojima, when can we start?" Robin asks, trying to keep the conversation from steering even more off course.

The detective turns around to the window. "As soon as the goddamn rain stops. The areas have been canvased to avoid losing evidence, but we're not sure how well that'll turn out considering all the gawkers in this town."

"We can split up and keep an eye on the area to prevent anyone from interfering with your work," Robin offers, the Titans nodding in agreement.

"I don't want to troub-"

"We came here to help you, Mr. Dojima. It would be rude of us to not help you protect the crime scenes," Starfire reasons.

Dojima chuckles. "All right, but you should get some rest. I know you're heroes, but even heroes need a break. You can start tomorrow. Here." He writes down his number. "Call me when you're ready to go tomorrow."

"Thank you," Robin accepts the paper, handing it over to Cyborg. As Cyborg inputs the number into his system, the Titans all head for the door. "Out of curiosity, Mr. Dojima, if it's not a bother…"

"Go ahead," Dojima gestures for Robin to continue.

"Who's the gray haired boy?"

"He's my nephew, Yu Narukami." Robin senses a menacing aura behind Dojima. "And heroes or not, if you harm him, you'll regret it," Dojima threatens.

As the Titans leave, Robin is the last to leave. "We'll keep that in mind." The door closes behind Dojima.

* * *

_Meanwhile…_

"What is this place? It looks just like the shopping district…What's going on here?" Yosuke asks, looking around the faux shopping district.

The students of Yasogami High School had gathered for a brief school assembly in the morning and that was where they discovered that Saki had died earlier in the morning. Agitated and unsure on Saki's death, Yosuke had asked Yu to accompany him back to the other world, despite Chie's protests. After they entered the other world, the bear had immediately appeared and accused them of being responsible for throwing people into the TV. Grudgingly, the duo had agreed to help the bear figure out who the real culprit is and now, the bear, introduced to them as Teddie, took them to the last location of Saki-senpai before her death. The shopping district.

"Some weird places have appeared here recently," Teddie, frowning, speaks up. "Things are getting so tangled, I dunno what to do…"

The duo turn around, seeing the distance between them and Teddie. "Uh…by the way, why are you standing so far from us? You better not be planning to high-tail it if something does come up."

"Of course not! I mean…uh…I can't stand too close, you know. I'd get in your way…"

Yosuke stares at him skeptically. He refocuses on the area. "Man, they really went all out on this. But out of all the places in town, why'd they replicate this one?"

"How should I know? This is reality for the one who's here."

Yosuke sighs exasperatedly. "As usual, nothing you say makes sense. But if this is our shopping distric, we're not far from Saki- senpai's…" Realization dawns on him and he takes off for the liquor store. "I knew it! This is the liquor store that Senpai's parents run. Does this mean…Senpai disappeared here? What could've happened?" Yosuke takes several steps forward when Teddie calls him back.

"W-wait a second. Th-they're here!"

"What?" Yosuke asks, confused.

"Shadows. I had a feeling they were going to attack!" A strange grumbling noise emits from the strange entrance.

"Uh…huh? Uh…" Yosuke stammers as he turns back to face the entrance. 2 frowning blue masks melt out of the entrance, dropping onto the ground with a _plop_. The black goo that connects to their masks helps them rise as Yosuke staggers back. He falls down, his feet giving away to fear. The shadows shift towards them before floating in the air again. They form a ball and turn pink, black stripes around the body. They flip over, revealing a large mouth with their tongues lolling out.

Yu suddenly hears another ringing noise, bringing his hand to clutch his head in pain. He hears the strange voice again.

_I am thou…_

_Thou art I!_

_The time has come…_

_Open thine eyes and call forth what is within!_

Yu gasps when the voice fades, opening his eyes and seeing a card in his hand. Teddie stares at it as well. Yu flips the card over, revealing empty space on the other side of the card, but it soon begins to glow, getting both Yosuke's and the shadows' attention. Yu smirks, hearing something in his voice as he utters one word.

"Per…so…na." His eyes widen as a blue flame erupts from the card and he crushes it in his hand. As the shadows move in towards Yu, he lets out a roar as the blue flame envelops him. A figure clad in a black suit rises behind him, holding a sword in his hand.

"Some shadows have weaknesses!" Teddie explains. "I think you should be able to exploit their weaknesses!"

The Persona zooms past Yu, electricity pulsing on its sword. It hits both of the shadows, instantly evaporating them.

After they regain their bearings, the three of them hear voices echoing from somewhere. "I wish Junes would go under…" A feminine voice complains.

Another voice accuses Junes. "It's all because of that store."

"Wh-what the-?" Yosuke mutters.

"Oh, I heard that Konishi-san's daughter works there," yet another voice gossips.

The gossiper's friend comments, "Oh my…How could she, with her family's business suffering like it is?"

"I heard their sales have gone downhill _because_ of Junes."

"S-stop it…" he begs.

"That poor father…to have his own daughter working for the _enemy_."

"What a troublesome child."

"H-hey, Ted!" Yosuke calls Teddie, who turns to him. "You said that this place is reality for those that are here, right? So…does this mean this was Senpai's reality when she wandered in here?"

"I…only know about what's over here…" Teddie explains, uncertain about the situation.

"Fine…whatever's going on here, we'll find out ourselves!" Yosuke yells. Leading the way, Yosuke runs into the portal.

They enter into the liquor store, barrels upon barrels stacked up on each other scattered around the room. Liquor store refrigerators line every last inch of the wall and a single wooden desk stands in the corner with pictures strewn about. "Dammit, not again," Yosuke darkly mutters.

They hear a man yelling. "Saki, how many times do I have to tell you? You know what the neighbors say about you, right? Aren't you ashamed of yourself? You're the eldest daughter of a family who's owned this store for generations! Is it the money? Or did you meet some guy there? Just tell me why you have to work _there_, of all places!"

"I…I can't believe this. She seemed like she had fun at work…She never said anything like this to me…You're telling me _this_ was how Senpai really saw things?" He notices the desk now. "These photos…" He picks up the closest one. "It's the photo we took the other day with the other part-timers at Junes…Why's it cut up like this?"

Before they can figure it out, Saki's voice can be heard. "I…never had the chance to say it…"

"Is that…Senpai's voice?" Yosuke's voice begins to crack.

"I always wanted to tell Hana-chan that he was a real pain in the ass."

"Huh? M-me…?"

"I was nice to him just because he was the store manager's son, _that's all_. But he takes it completely the wrong way and gets all enthusiastic…what a dip."

"P-pain in the ass?" he sullenly repeats.

"Who cares about Junes, anyway? Because of that store, our business is ruined, my parents hate me, and the neighbors talk behind my back. I wish everything would just disappear…"

"I-it's a lie…This can't be…Senpai's not like that!" Yosuke denies.

"**It's…*sniff* sO sAD…I fEeL sO sORry fOr mYseLF…bOO hOo.**" The two turn in the direction of the voice, seeing another Yosuke, surrounded by a menacing aura. "**ACtuALly, I'm thE oNE wHo THInks eVerYThINg'S a PaIN iN tHe Ass.**" The other Yosuke chuckles evilly as Teddie runs in.

"Huh? Two Yosukes?"

Yosuke closes the distance, albeit tentatively. "Who are you? I-I wouldn't think that…"

The shadow laughs at him. "**YEAh, rIGhT. How LoNG arE yoU gOIng tO kEEP dEluDInG yOurSelF? ScREW thE ShoPPing DISTrict, aND JUnES toO! YoU'RE siCK oF EvERyTHIng, eSpeCIalLy lIVIng oUT iN tHE stICKs!**"

"What're you saying? That's not true, I-"

"**You PUT oN A GooD sHOw oF bEInG cArEFree anD hAPpY-gO-luCKy 'cAusE yOu'Re sO TerRifiED of BeinG ALonE. ThE MoRe, thE MErriEr, righT? You'VE gottA bE SURroUNDED bY PeoPle tO BLoCK Out thE PAiN oF IsoLatIon. AnD whAT's THIs aBOut ChecKIng oUT tHIS worLD foR SakI-SenPaI's sAKe? HAH! I KnoW The REAL reASon yOU CAme snOOpINg…**"

"Stop it!" he begs, but the shadow only continues laughing.

"**WHY so PANickeD? I thouGHT I wAs jUSt sPOuTIng bULLshit! Or MAYbe…I DO kNOW eVERYthinG yoU'rE tHINKinG! Why's That? BECauSe I AM yOU! YOU jusT CaME beCAUSe yOu THOuGht iT sOundEd LiKE a GooD tIMe! WHAt elSE iS thERE TO Do OuT In ThiS SHIthoLE? A WorlD inSIde thE TV – nOW thAT'S exCitiNG! YOU diDN't havE a SInGle oTHer ReASon fOR coMInG heRe, diD yoU?**"

Yosuke shakes his head, an expression of pain on his face now. "That's not true...stop...stop it..."

Disgusted, the shadow tries to egg him on. "**You'RE jUSt TryInG tO AcT lIke A Big ShoT...iF alL wEnt weLL, heY, maYbe YoU coUlD evEn bE a HerO! And thAT seNpai yOu weRe sO swEEt oN? HeR deAth wAs thE peRfeCt eXcuSe!**"

"That's not true!" he denies it. "What are you? Who are you?"

The shadow chuckles. "**I AlrEAdy tOLd yA. "I'M yOU...yOUr shaDow...thEre'S NOtHing I don'T kNOw aBOut yoU!**"

"Screw that! I don't know you! You can't be me, you son of a bitch!"

The shadow laughs even louder. "**ThAT'S RIGHT! SAY IT AGAiN!**"

"You're not me. You're nothing like me!"

"**Hmph. YEAh, THAT's RIGHt. I AM ME NOW. I'm nOT YOU ANYMOre, SEE?**" A blinding light envelops the shadow as it transforms into a grotesque figure and Yosuke passes out. The monster resembles a large, camoflauged frog with a Cheshire-like grin, baring its sharp, yellow teeth. Connected to the back, a black figure with large yellow gloves and a long red scarf moves around. Its yellow, shuriken-shaped eyes turn towards Yu. "**I aM a sHAdOw. ThE tRUe sElf. I'LL cRush eVErythiNg tHat bOreS me…StarTing wIth YOU!**" It unleashes a strong gust of wind, staggering Yu, and laughs maniacally. "**HoW lONg cAn yOu SUrvIve ThIS?**" Yu summons Izanagi to counter the shadow. After multiple attacks that weakens the shadow, it slowly evaporates. "**DAMN YOU TO HELL!**"

Yu turns back to Yosuke, noticing him getting up. "You okay?"

"Yosuke, are you okay?"

"Y-yeah…what happened?" he asks, staggering. He notices the shadow staring back at him. "You…you're not me…"

"That thing came from you, Yosuke…" Teddie sullenly reveals. "You have to admit it…or it'll go berserk again…"

"Everyone's the same inside," Yu agrees, noticing that Yosuke is reluctant to admit it. "Everyone has that side that they refuse to show others, and everyone will have those thoughts. That's how we are. We're only human, after all."

Yosuke walks closer to the shadow, placing his hand on its shoulder. "Dammit, it hurts to face yourself…I knew it wasn't lying…But I was so ashamed that I didn't want to admit it…You're me…and I'm you. When you get down to it, all of this is me." The shadow nods, vanishing and then reappearing as a Persona.

The Persona, Jiraiya, has shurikens attached to its webbed fingers and the Cheshire smile is still on its face. A red scarf flows behind it and it has toad-like eyes instead of the shuriken eyes from earlier. Jiraiya disappears as a card floats down towards Yosuke's palm. He closes up his hand and the aura envelops him as he mutters to himself.

"This is my Persona…" Yosuke slumps. "When we heard Senpai's voice…I wonder if that was something Senpai had been keeping deep down inside…Haha, 'he was a real pain in the ass,' huh? What a way to find out…Geez, this is so embarrassing." Yu walks over, offering him a hand. "If you weren't here, I don't know what would've happened…Thanks, Yu." Taking his hand, Yosuke turns to Teddie. "Hey, Teddie…could Senpai have been attacked by her other self here? Like how it just happened to me?"

Teddie pauses. "The shadows here were originally born from humans. Sometimes the fog clears. Then they all go berserk. And you saw what happens next. A strong-willed Shadow draws others to it. And the big mass of Shadows kill the host. According to this one person that showed up earlier, she said that she saw Saki be smothered by her shado-"

"Wait, there was someone here before us? When?" Yu asks.

"She appeared a while ago, it was around the time I sensed Saki in the world. Then I sensed another presence so I went to investigate. That was when this other person ran into-"

"Wait, are you saying that this person saw Senpai die and they didn't do _anything_ to help her?"

"She seemed pretty shaken up as it was. She was desperately searching for a way out so I let her out."

"You didn't even bother asking her for her name?" Before Teddie can answer, Yosuke slumps against Yu.

"Look, we've had a long day. We'll mull it over another time. For now, we should return back to our world and rest. Once you're feeling better, then we can start figuring out who this person is."

"But-"

"Yosuke, you're worn out. This world isn't made for humans. It's not comfortable for you here," Teddie urges. "Let's go back."

* * *

**Time: 1930 hours**

**Date: April 15, 2011**

**Location: Dojima Residence**

"Our next story is an update in our ongoing report on the bizarre murders occurring in Inaba." Yu and Nanako sit in front of the TV. After taking Yosuke back to their world, they had comforted Chie, whom was bawling her eyes out over potentially losing them. On his way back, Yu ran into Yukiko and talked to her for a bit before she left to continue her errand for her parents.

"At around 7:00 AM, local high school student Saki Konishi was found dead in Inaba's residential area. Since the body was positioned similarly to the last victim, and since Ms. Konishi was the one who discovered that body, police are proceeding under the assumption that this may be a serial murder case related to the death of Mayumi Yamano. The coroner's report has established Ms. Konishi's time of death at around 1:00 AM last night. The body went unnoticed until this morning as a result of the heavy fog blanketing the area."

"Another incident…Dad won't be coming home tonight," Nanako depressingly comments.

"I'll be here with you," Yu tells her reassuringly.

"I'll be okay."

"-Amagi Inn, located upstream of Samegawa River, is the town's oldest historical landmark. Vacationers are known to travel surprising distances in order to visit its open-air, radium-rich hot springs. After the incident with Ms. Yamano, the manager has stepped aside, leaving her daughter, Yukiko, to fill her shoes." The camera pans to Yukiko, clad in the same pink kimono that Yu had seen her in earlier today. "In other words, she's a manager still in high school. Now that has a nice ring to it! Let's see if we can interview her. Excuse me!"

The reporter seems to pounce onto Yukiko. "Hm? Um…are you speaking to me?"

"We've heard that you're the new manager. Is it true you're still in high school?"

"Oh, well, I'm only filling in temporarily."

"Someday, though…That aside, wow! You're looking gorgeous in that kimono!" he compliments her. "You must have had a lot of male visitors."

Yukiko, thrown off by his comment, stutters. "Huh? No, um…"

As the reporter continues asking strange questions, Nanako flips the channel. "This is boring."

"-en Titans. They revealed the truth about former Tokyo Troopers Commander Uehara Daizo a year ago."

"Some teenagers, huh? They're pretty amazing!" another commentator states.

"Yes, and they are currently residing in Amagi Inn. But they have requested privacy for now."

"Is there any information as to why they're here?"

"Speculators believe they are here to assist the police in capturing the serial murder that has thrown our beloved Inaba into chaos."

"The Teen Titans are here?" Nanako seems to be bouncing up and down in her seat.

"You like them?"

"I love them! They're my favorite superheroes! Especially the red-haired one because she's really nice!" Nanako replies with a smile.

Pictures of each Titan appear on the screen and Yu can't help but notice the one in the blue cloak. He feels a strange tugging and Izanagi speaks.

_She is thou…_

_Thou is she…_

_An important bond forms between thee…_

"An important bond…?" he wonders aloud, looking back at the screen, focusing on the hooded person. There's something going on in Inaba, and they are somehow connected to it just like he is.

But how…?

* * *

**Is it just me…or are these chapters getting longer and longer? o3o**


	4. Do You Seek the Truth?

**Since it's all basically Japan now, I'm just gonna show the time but not specify the area to avoid redundancy. Also, I do have Personas chosen for the Titans and a vague description of the Personas and their Shadows. Suggestions for both would still be gladly accepted. **

**On with the story~**

* * *

**Time: 2245 hours**

**Date: April 15, 2011**

**Location: Titans' Room, Amagi Inn**

Raven stands under the awning as rain continues pouring down above. Despite the rain, she can't help but feel at ease with the fresh air that Inaba has. The rain just adds a soothing feeling to it and it just helps her feel free from the situation. The Titans had checked into the Amagi Inn without any problems, although Robin was paranoid and insisted they appear in disguises. She rolls her eyes, that went very well. Especially when Beast Boy was a green dog. The workers had instantly changed attitude and pampered them, despite their insistence that they be treated like any normal guests.

Oh well. What's done is done. The Titans' appearance in Amagi Inn is sure to help the inn with more customers, but the downside was, of course, they'd be answering the door every few minutes with another person asking for an autograph.

_Knock-knock_. Speaking of which.

Raven ignores the conversation Robin has with the one at the door and continues staring out to the sky, wrapping her cloak tightly around her to protect herself from the chill. "You ok, Raven?" Cyborg asks, concern evident in his voice. She glances sideways, seeing his shadow at the door leading into their room.

"Yeah, just getting a breath of fresh air. It's amazing," she tells him breathlessly. "The air is so much clearer here, there isn't as much pollution here as compared to Jump City."

"Yeah, it is pretty awesome," Cyborg agrees, coming to stand alongside her. The glint from his ring grabs her attention. She had thought that he had decided to stop being Stone, but then again, having that ring can be very helpful for disguises.

"I still can't figure it out."

"What?"

"How Saki died and why she didn't appear in this world until this morning. The time difference doesn't make sense. If she died right away, Saki should have appeared at least yesterday."

"Maybe it takes time for her body to come back over here?"

"We don't even know how she ended up tied up like that. To begin with, I highly doubt anyone was there to help hang her like that."

"Raven!" Robin's voice interrupts their musings. "Someone at the door for you."

She slumps briefly, muttering something under her breath. "We're not celebrities…" She grudgingly walks over to the entrance to their room, walking past a snoring Beast Boy and Starfire rearranging her futon. Her futon is the closest to the balcony, with Cyborg's next to hers. Beast Boy is in the middle and Starfire is next to him. Robin's futon is situated the closest to the door, ready to jump whoever might try to attack them.

Robin steps aside as Raven opens the door, seeing a girl with long, black hair dressed in a pink kimono. She has a robotic and generic smile used for every customer, but Raven can sense the girl's hidden excitement. "Hello, are you enjoying your stay at Amagi Inn?" she asks, bowing slightly. Raven steps out, closing the door behind her.

"You called for me specifically. Is there something you need?" she asks.

"Well, I just wanted to meet you in person. I was curious to the 'head figure' of that donkey gum."

Raven grimaces, recalling the pack of gum the vendor had given her back when they travelled to Tokyo. "Right…Did you want an autograph or something?"

"Oh no, it's not right for me to do so. Mother would never let me do that. I simply wanted to see how you were handling your stay here. Do you and your friend want a separate room? We can provide one for yo-"

"It's fine. If we're all in one room, it'll be easier for us to discuss everything."

"Are you sure?" she asks again. "Normally, we would have separate rooms for parties with both genders. It is simply tradition."

"Yes, we'll be fine. Thank you for the offer though…" she pauses, realizing that she doesn't know the girl's name.

"Oh, my name is Yukiko Amagi."

"Ms. Amag-"

"Oh no, please. Just call me Yukiko. You are only a year older than me."

Raven smiles. "Thanks for your offer, Yukiko."

"No problem, the pleasure is all mine." She hears someone calling for her. "It was a pleasure talking to you, Ms. Raven." She bows, walking down the hallway as Raven walks back into her room.

"Yukiko Amagi, huh?" she mutters under her breath, seeing Robin watching a clip of the Amagi Inn. "Is that a rerun?"

"Hm? Yeah, there was an interview about 2 hours ago and they're just replaying it. They had an interview with the daughter of the manager and then they shifted the conversation to their coverage on us. We're bound to be hit by the masses tomorrow," Robin grudgingly mutters.

"It'd probably be a good idea to keep Beast Boy here in the inn while we go around looking for clues," Cyborg suggests, standing behind them while they watch the TV. "He probably wants to meet some girls and I bet being here would be a great way for him to both be useful and get what he wants."

"That's what I was thinking too. The four of us can easily blend in and we can technically have Beast Boy stay here and keep an eye on the area to make sure nothing's wrong," Robin agrees, nodding.

Starfire walks over to the table next to the door, picking up a piece of paper. "Robin! The inn workers have left a map for us here to peruse!" Starfire announces, walking over and handing it over to him.

He lays it out in front of the TV, the other three crowding around him to determine how to evenly distribute the area. "First things first, we're all in agreement that Beast Boy will stay here and keep an eye on the inn, right?"

The three of them nod, but Cyborg voices a concern that he just realized. "What if he gets bored?"

"That's what I'm worried about," Robin answers with a sigh.

"If he realizes how important this is, he should be able to stay focused until we check up on him at least," Raven comments.

Robin nods thoughtfully, scanning the map. "Junes…"

"I shall focus on Junes and the surrounding area," Starfire volunteers. "It will allow me to buy and try Japanese delicacies. Hopefully, they will also have mustard for me." She smiles, craving the taste of mustard on her tongue once again.

"All right, Star will take care of Junes." Robin circles the area around Junes, writing Starfire at the top of the circle. He looks for the shopping district, finally locating it. "Raven, do you want the-?"

"I'll take the shopping district." As Robin opens his mouth to argue, Cyborg leans in and whispers in his ear. "Raven's still shaken up about what she saw, can't you tell?" Robin glances at Raven, realizing that sending her to an area where she had seen someone die to unknown circumstances would definitely be a bad idea.

"All right, Cyborg, you'll take the shopping district." He circles the surrounding area before moving on. "The riverbank and the Yasogami High School."

"I'll take it," Raven briefly states, remembering the photo of Yu. _"That way I'll be able to talk to Yu to figure out just what the hell is going on as well."_

Robin circles Raven's choices before looking at the remaining options. "I'll go back to the police station and talk to the personnel there to see if they have any information." He pulls out the T-communicator. "If anything comes up, contact the rest of us and we'll be there right away."

They nod and Robin rolls up the map. "I'll see if I can ask for copies of the map so you guys can find your way around the town." With that, Robin leaves the room, heading out to talk to the manager. Starfire, with a clear mission decided, walks back to her futon and slides in. Raven can hear her breathing slow and soon, Starfire is asleep.

Raven turns off the TV, staring at her reflection on the darkened television. "Waiting for the Midnight Channel to come on?" Cyborg's voice shakes her out of her thoughts. "There's still another hour and a half. C'mon, Raven, let's sleep for now." He helps her stand up as she glances back at the TV once more.

She feels a strange tugging in her chest, and a strange voice mutters in her mind.

_Thou hast a special bond…_

She shakes her head, sliding open the door to the balcony. "I'll meditate and then rest after watching the Midnight Channel."

"Are you sure you don't wanna-?"

"I'll be fine, Cyborg," she reassures him with a small smile, stepping onto the balcony and sliding the door closed behind her. She takes a deep breath again, glancing up at the rain again. Floating up and crossing her legs, she slowly calms her body. "Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos…"

* * *

**Time: 2355 hours**

**Date: April 15, 2011**

**Location: Dojima Residence**

Yu stares out the window as the rain continues falling down. The clock's ticking reminds him that it is close to midnight now so he moves away from his window. Walking over to the TV, he focuses on the brief news showing on the TV.

"In other Inaba-related news, meteorologists are predicting heavy fog throughout the area. The region has seen an abnormal amount of fog over the past few years, and the cause of the climate change is unknown. Whatever the reason, residents of Inaba area should be extra careful," the weather announcer warns. "Our broadcast tonight was extended to bring you up-to-date news on the incident in Inaba. The time is now midnight."

Yu immediately turns off the TV and in a split second, the screen flickers yellow again. This time, only a silhouette appears. Based on just the silhouette, Yu can determine that the figure is female and they seem to be wearing a kimono. However, the image is too unfocused for him to fully deduce who it is. However…what if he were to reach into the TV while the Midnight Channel is on…?

He tries it out and his hand actually does fall into the TV. However, as a result, the image disappears from the screen. Deciding that there isn't much left that he can do, Yu turns away and unrolls the futon. As he lays there with his eyes closed, he hears Izanagi speaking again.

_The bond thou hast formed will help thou._

"What bond…?" he mutters to himself as he drifts off to sleep.

* * *

**Time: 0000 hours**

**Date: April 16, 2011**

**Location: Titans' Room, Amagi Inn**

Starfire and Beast Boy's soft breathing are heard over the deafening silence between Raven, Robin, and Cyborg. Robin had returned with 4 maps for the rest of the team ten minutes prior to the "program" and Cyborg was prepared to call Raven back into the room. The three quickly prepared their futons, finishing in time for the Midnight Channel to air. Now, the three of them sit in mute silence in front of the TV. The Midnight Channel has revealed its next victim and the trio can't help but feel a bit antsy. Raven reaches out to the screen and her hand falls in again. Robin and Cyborg tense, prepared to help her if she were to fall in. The image on the screen, a female in a kimono, disappears after Raven puts her hand in, leaving her no choice but to pull it back out.

The screen darkens and Raven stands there, rigid. _"That figure looked a lot like Yukiko…_"

"Who could that have been…?" Robin mutters, trying to recall if he had ever met anyone that looked like that.

"Whoever it was, they looked pretty familiar. We're gonna have to be really careful and keep an eye on the activities going on tomorrow," Cyborg mutters.

"Raven? Are you okay?" Robin asks, placing a hand on her shoulder. She continues to stare at her reflection, unable to say anything.

Robin attempts to jostle her again, but Cyborg pulls him away. "Lay off, man, she's thinking about something. Just leave her alone for now."

Cyborg moves over to his futon, lying down and falling asleep in an instant. Robin grudgingly removes his hand from her shoulder and crawls back to his futon. He turns off the lamp before lying down to sleep. Soon, his breathing regulates and he's asleep. Raven instantly stands up, pulling on her boots and clasping on her hood. She stands in front of the TV, hesitating for a moment. She turns back to the four prone figures as they continue their slumber. "I'm sorry…but I'll be back soon…"

Taking a deep breath, she ties rope around her abdomen. She ties the other end of the rope to the leg of the drawer next to the TV. With one final glance back to the Titans, she jumps into the TV.

* * *

**Time: 0020 hours**

**Date: April 16, 2011**

**Location: TV World**

Raven lithely lands onto the ground, bringing her hands up in front of her. Her aura flickers briefly before disappearing, leaving her powerless yet again. "I hope nothing happens to me…" She tugs on the rope, feeling no resistance. Worry creeps its way into her stomach as she fearfully turn around. Her fear comes true; the rope had somehow been cut off after she went through the TV. She unties the rope around her waist, cursing her fate under her breath. Letting the rope drop, she attempts to look around. The fog is still a persistent issue, but it does reassure her that she'll be safe…for now at least. But for how long?

She takes a few steps forward, trying to find Teddie. "Hello? Teddie? Are you here?" she asks. She tries to fly up, but nothing happens. "Great, I'm still powerless for some reason and I don't even know why."

A sinister chuckle suddenly fills the air, causing Raven to tense up. "Who's there?"

"Are you…perhaps another…?" The scene shifts to a blue-ish tinted fog and red blocks set up to create a path. Raven looks around, trying to discern the location of the voice.

"Who are you?" With no response, she tentatively steps onto another block. It stays, supporting her weight. She decides that the only way to go is forward and just follow the path. She jogs through, looking down at the glow surrounding the blocks.

"Do you seek the truth…?" She stops, as the voice disappears. She tries jogging forward and as she turns at the bend, the voice reappears. "If it's truth you desire, come and find me…"

"The truth about what…?" Raven mutters under her breath. She realizes that the voice is just up ahead and she picks up speed, almost colliding with a strange, red door. She places her hand on the door and instantly whirls and rotates, opening up into a blinding light. When the light dims, she senses a figure in front of her, faint, but present.

"So you are the one pursuing me…" The androgynous voice chuckles. "Try all you like…"

Raven feels a strange weight on her right shoulder, turning around slightly to see feathered fletchings of an arrow protruding out of a leather quiver. She looks down to her left hand and sees a blue bow gripped firmly in her hand. She reaches behind and pulls out an arrow, discovering that its shaft is the same shade of blue as the bow and the arrowhead has an iron tip. She nocks the arrow onto the bow, taking aim at the area where the figure seems to be. As she releases the arrow, she can't help but wonder just where the heck she had learned how to do archery.

The arrow seems to hit its mark and the figure only chuckles. "It seems that you can see a little, despite the fog…"

She tries again, pulling out another arrow from the quiver. Repeating the same motion as before, the arrow, once again, seems to have hit the opponent. "Just what the hell is going on…?" she mutters under her breath.

"I see…indeed. That is very interesting information…"

"Information about what?" Raven asks, pulling out another arrow and nocking it to the bow. No answer. She attacks again with her bow.

"But…you will not catch me so easily…If what you seek is the 'truth', then your search will be even harder…" Fog flows out of the figure's body and soon, Raven is blinded. However, she nocks another arrow to the bow, undaunted by the fog. Remembering the previous location of the figure, she releases an arrow there. No noise happens to indicate that she had hit something. "Everyone sees what they want to…" the figure states cryptically. "And the fog only deepens."

"What the hell are you talking about…?" She tries to attack the figure again, but the same result is produced.

"...Will we meet again? At a place other than here…" A chuckle. "I look forward to it…"

The fog completely covers the area, and Raven can barely even see the rest of her body as a result. She closes her eyes briefly and suddenly, she is in another location. "Where…?" The fog gradually clears out and Raven backs up in surprise, bumping into someone. She lurches forward, pulls out an arrow, and nocking it to the bow, turns around, poised to attack whoever it is. She relaxes when she realizes that it's Teddie. "Teddie! You surprised me." She replaces her arrow and walks back over to Teddie.

"Wh-what are you doing here? You don't have a Persona that I know of! This is dangerous!"

"What? What's a Persona?"

"It's the only method you can use to help you fight the Shadows here! You should be lucky that the fog hasn't cleared out yet." Raven ignores him, glancing around to confirm her suspicions. Her eyes widen in fear as she turns back to Teddie.

"Teddie, what is going on?" she asks him, her hands quivering.

"What're you talking about?"

"I mean, where the hell am I? Why does this place look…look so much like…" she trails off, taking a few steps forward onto the solid marble flooring. _"Azarath…_"

"Hm? I don't know, but I think wherever this place is, it's a related to you. These strange locations pop up as a result of a person's thoughts and feelings."

"So you're saying this place was created because of me?"

"That's what I think. But you shouldn't go anywhere! You should wait for Sensei and Yosuke to come back here to help you explore."

"I don't know who you're talking about, but this is my home, Teddie. I need to figure out if it's an illusion or the actual place."

"What? But, miss, you can't!" Ignoring Teddie's protests, Raven runs through the streets, glancing left and right. Despite the fog, she can still see the buildings in the closest proximity to her and she can't help but feel nostalgic. She enters the city's square, looking around for any indication of where to go next.

"Maybe the temple…" Before she can take off, Teddie's voice grabs her attention.

"Wait! It's dangerous to wander around this world alone! You never know what could happen!"

He catches up to her, toddling forward. "I'll be fine, Teddie. This is my home and I'm pretty sure I kn-" She tenses up, pulling out an arrow again.

"Huh?"

Raven shifts around, hiding behind a gold column. Teddie silences himself and hides behind her. "I can't see anything in this damn fog…"

Teddie nudges her and she turns to him, glaring at him. "What?"

He procures a pair of blue glasses, the lens slightly dark as though it is a pair of sunglasses. "Here, miss, if you wear this, you'll be able to see through the fog."

She accepts the glasses, putting it on and her eyes instantly widen. He was right! The fog is completely gone as if it was never there. "Thanks, Teddie." She vaguely hears him respond as she scans the area trying to determine where she had sensed the presence.

She hears a sinister chuckle again, her grip tightening on the bow and she can't help but wonder just how durable this bow is. She concentrates harder, looking around for any strange movements when suddenly… "**Boo**."

She instinctively ducks as the column explodes in rubble and debris, a fist firmly planted into the column. Teddie rolls out of the way as Raven crawls backwards, her eyes taking in the figure before her. The figure resembles both her mother and her least favorite emotion, Rage, a twisted form of her mother. "Mother…"

Half of the face is contorted in a twisted and maniacal smile, resembling Rage. The other half of the face reminds her of her mother, smooth, somewhat pale skin and a chakra placed on the forehead. Her violet hair can be seen under the hood and the majority of the cloak is red, only the hood is white. Like her father, the demon side has two slanted eyes, but instead of glowing red, it glows yellow. Her mother's eye also glows yellow. "That's not your mother! That's your shadow!"

"What? What's that?" Raven asks, as she pulls herself up with the help of Teddie.

"That came out of you! It's your suppressed emotions that manifested as a result of this world. That's the other thing that I was worried about if you came back without Sensei here to help you! That's why I told you to escape and not explore this place!" Teddie chastises, keeping a close eye on the Shadow's movements.

"Like Saki?"

"Yes, like Saki's and Yosuke's!"

Raven takes aim at the Shadow, as it stares at her. Her mother's face looks at her with concern, like a typical mother, causing Raven to hesitate. The demon side laughs, its voice sounding even more twisted as a result of it being a shadow. "**wHaT, tOo aFraId to sHOOt yOuR owN mother?**" the Shadow asks, taking a step towards her. Raven doesn't fail to notice the ice that is spreading under the Shadow's feet.

Raven scowls, gritting her teeth as her arms shake. Whether it's from exertion or from something else, she doesn't know. "Of course not. I'll stop you if I have to."

"**ThEn go AHeAd. ShoOT mE. YoU'rE jUst liKE TRIGon.**"

Raven's eyes widen as she takes a step back. "Don't you _ever_ compare me to him," she growls, struggling to aim at the Shadow as it constantly moves just slightly to prevent Raven from a clear shot.

"**OR WhAT? yOU'lL lET yOUr rAGe coNSUme yOU? BuT wAIt, thAT woULDn'T boDe wEll wiTh yOUr friEndS, wOUld iT?**"

"What're you talking about?" She lowers the bow and the Shadow immediately pounces onto her. Teddie is shoved out of the way, and Raven's bow skitters away from her reach. She tries to reach for it, but the Shadow holds both her hands down.

"**InsIDe, yoU fEAr thE RaGe thAt COulD coNSumE yoU sHOuld YOU lOSe cONtroL. AnD as A resULt, yoU sHUt yOuRSelF aWAy fRoM yOUr teAmmaTEs.**" The shadow leans in. "**BoTH pHYSicallY AND EMotionAlly.**"

"You're lying!" she growls back, trying to get movement in her legs.

"**YoU rEfUse tO LET ANYoNE IN And yOU COnstanTLY PusH ThEM AwaY. YoU FeAR ReJEctioN. YoU FeAR yOUr frIEnds eXclUDiNg yOu frOM eVERyTHing, buT YoU Can'T dO ANYthiNG becAUse YoU haVE pUSheD tHEM awAY!**"

Raven plants her feet on the ground and pushes her body upwards, flipping the Shadow away from her. She somersaults in the opposite direction of where the Shadow was thrown, luckily landing beside her bow. "You're lying! Nothing you say is true!" she shouts back.

"Wait, no! Miss! Don't say it!"

Undaunted, the Shadow continues its line of pursuit as it stands up, a dark aura appearing behind it. "**YoU KNOw It iS TRUe. WhY dO yOU coNTiNUe TO DENy IT? YoU KnOW…ThaT I ****_AM_**** YOU.**"

Forgetting her own warnings on the matter, Raven blurts out. "You're _not _me! You _can't_ be me! I _refuse_ to accept it!"

The deafening silence follows her outburst as Raven realizes what she had just said. The Shadow releases a mirthful laughter, even her mother's face is laughing. "**THAt IS RIGHt! I AM MY OWn SELf NOW!**"

"Miss, watch out!" Teddie collides with Raven, pushing her out of the dark aura that had landed on her previous location. The aura envelops the Shadow as it transforms, the laughter deafening in the area.

The aura disappears, revealing the Shadow flying in the air. The cloak is completely red now and ice-enveloped gauntlets are strapped onto the Shadow's hands and wrist. A blue bow is also in its left hand, arrows protruding behind her. The Shadow, underneath the cloak, is wearing a battle breastplate, ice beginning to form on it. The Shadow also has a light blue, pleated skirt, a belt wrapped around its waist. Ice covers its lower body, resembling armor as well. "What…is that?"

"This is your Shadow when you reject it! If you can't defeat it, it'll kill you," Teddie explains, a frown on his face.

The Shadow pulls out an arrow from the quiver, pointing it directly at Raven's head. Ice begins to cover its iron-tipped arrowhead. "**I AM A SHADOW. THE TRUE SELF. TRY AND CONTROL YOUR EMOTIONS AND DEFEAT ME IF YOU CAN**."

The Shadow releases the arrow, flying directly towards Raven.

* * *

**Enjoying hanging on the cliff? No? Well too bad, you're gonna keep hanging on it for a little bit longer ;) And oops, I lied...the word count for this chapter is a lot less ^^;**

**I will try to upload at least one chapter once a week. I do have Chapter 5 completed, but I won't upload until I'm done with 6 to avoid falling behind with chapters.**

**Please review :D**


	5. I'll Face Myself

**Listen to the "I Will Face Myself" battle theme during the fight and the slower version afterwards so it'll feel like an actual scene in the game ;)**

* * *

**Time: Unknown**

**Date: April 16, 2011**

**Location: Parallel Azarath, TV World**

Raven narrowly dodges to the side as the arrow hits the floor, ice bursting forth. She breaths out a brief sigh of relief, glad that she hadn't let the arrow hit her. "Teddie! How do I stop the Shadow?" Raven asks as she continues to dodge the Shadow's attacks. She leaps forward as the fifth arrow tries to capture her and it snags a bit of her cloak. She briefly fumbles, stumbling over. She desperately claws at the clasp to her hood as the Shadow descends and aims an arrow point-blank at her. She can feel the chill from the arrow.

Teddie blindsides the Shadow and the arrow imbeds itself into the ground next to Raven. She brings up her right arm to protect herself and the ice latches onto her arm. Shivering, she breaks off the ice with a karate chop, briefly thanking Robin for teaching her, and successfully unclasps her cloak. She grabs the quiver on the ground and places it onto her shoulder. Bow still clutched in her hand, she pulls out an arrow and, without aiming for a particular spot, shoots it at the Shadow. The Shadow, having just stood up, twirls out of the way, but the arrow does hit the cloak. Ice also spreads up the cloak, leaving Raven and Teddie surprised as to how Raven had done it. Without skipping a beat, the Shadow pulls off the cloak before it can spread, revealing violet hair like Raven.

"**NiCe tRiCK! BUt lEt'S sEe hOw yoU dEaL wItH tHiS!**" The Shadow releases a volley of arrows that Raven desperately dodges and weaves through. She shoots an arrow at the Shadow at point-blank, grabbing Teddie away from the Shadow. The Shadow catches the arrow and ice explodes in its face as Raven and Teddie run away. "**YOu wOn'T eScApE mE fOr lONg!**" it yells, flying up and searching for them.

In an alleyway, Raven tries to catch her breath, her hands on her knees as she bends over. "Miss, are you okay?" Teddie asks worriedly. "I could try to call Sensei for you if you wan-"

"No, this is my fight. I have to defeat that Shadow, right?"

"Yes, once it is weak enough, it will revert back to its normal self. However, you have to accept it, otherwise it will go bear-serk again," Teddie replies, throwing in his typical play on words. It soars over Raven's head.

"I can't defeat it if it keeps trying to kill me. If it wants me to accept it so badly, why is it even attacking me in the first place?"

"Even though it is a part of you and it does want you to accept it," Teddie begins, "it also yearns to have its own self. Its own person. This world is shaped and based on human thoughts, and these stronger Shadows are created from thoughts of humankind. If you accept that this Shadow is a part of you, you will be able to access something called Persona and be able to help Sensei's team on solving the mystery of who's been throwing people into the TV!"

"There has to be some way to defeat it…" Raven mutters more to herself, ignoring the last part. "If that thing came from me…its strategy in battle should be the same as mine. Meaning, it would-" Raven pushes Teddie backwards, the two tumbling away as ice erupts from where they stood. "…try to sneak up on the opponent without letting them know until it's too late."

Teddie flounders, trying to push himself up as Raven looks around for her Shadow. "**So, yOU fiGuREd oUt tHat mY FIGhtINg STylE iS VErY siMIlAR TO yOURs. VERy welL, lEt'S sEE wHo wILl oUTSmARt thE otHEr fiRsT**." Both Raven and Shadow Raven shoot arrows at one another, each arrow exploding in ice.

Teddie manages to roll away, and Raven leaps in the opposite direction, tucking and rolling away. "Teddie, scatter!" she commands him, swiping her hand out in a sweeping arc. Teddie immediately toddles away as Raven runs as well, hoping that the Shadow would go after her.

She runs through the long alleyways, hiding in the shadows as she catches her breath. She looks around, trying to ascertain just where she is. A large building off to the distance catches her attention, and she has a strange yearning to enter it. Upon approaching it, she realizes that it's her home. The Temple of Azarath. Marble steps lead all the way to the entrance, pillars on both sides holding up additional pathways to the entrance. Raven runs as quickly as possible up the steps, hoping beyond hope that maybe, just maybe, there is someone in there that can help her. She reaches the large, wooden doors and pushes it, grunting. The doors give way with a groan and Raven winces, hoping that the Shadow doesn't discover her just yet.

She steps into the temple, memories of her childhood coming back to her for a moment. A vague memory of her even learning archery flits across her mind, but she is unsure whether it was enough for her to fight back as well as she was earlier. And how did she even have the ability to incorporate ice abilities into the arrows?

Searching throughout the temple, Raven finally finds herself in front of one particular door. Her old room. Reluctant to enter, she looks around again. Memories of her childhood all begin to rush back to her. Her nursemaid, Galya, watching over her when she was still a baby; Juris, the man that had wanted to try and kill her but died as a result; Coman, the High Magistrate that separated her from her mother; Azar, the beloved "almost Goddess" that had overseen her training when she was younger; and her mother…Arella, who had been forced to conceive her as a result of Trigon's ambitions to take over the universes.

Her heart tightens in sadness when she remembers that Trigon had somehow destroyed her home while she was on Earth and that this is only an illusion that will disappear once she defeats the Shadow. Tears well up in her eyes, but she blinks them away, deciding that she'll cry later. With a newly steeled resolve, she turns around and prepares to enter her room when she stops herself. She senses a presence in there. She scans the area to see if there's any way for her to enter. For all she knows, it could be-

The door swings open and a blue paw pulls her in before she can even grunt in surprise. "Teddie! What're you-?"

"Shh! The Shadow is getting closer! It's bound to find out where we are."

Raven barely has time to take in her room, which closely resembles her room back at Titans Tower, before Teddie pulls her to the side. "We can't just sit here until the Shadow comes. I have to fight it! You said it yourself. I have to accept it as a part of me."

She walks away from Teddie, leaning against the door trying to listen to footsteps or any indication as to where the Shadow is. "It's too dangerous to fight here! You should wait before someone comes and help!"

"Such as?"

"I don't know, your friends maybe?"

Warning bells immediately sound in her head as she turns back to Teddie, hoping that her face doesn't betray her thoughts. "That's risky. I don't know when they're bound to come since I left them while they were all sleeping."

"I'm sure they can come and help you soo-"

"Teddie."

"Yes?"

"What was the name of the person you said you should get help from?"

"Eh? Uh…" Teddie pauses, and Raven's left hand twitches as she tries to reach for an arrow without Teddie noticing. Teddie shakes his head. "That's not important right now. What's important right now is that-" He dodges the arrow that comes at him, slipping on the ice. "What the heck?"

Raven steps to Teddie, pointing the arrow directly at his head. "My friends can't even get _into_ the TV and for the record, Teddie never even gave me the person's name."

The fake Teddie frowns, before chuckling. The façade melts away like water, revealing the Shadow. "**iMPressIVe. BuT…nOT goOD enough**."

The Shadow sweeps at Raven's feet, knocking her down. Raven barely rolls out of the way as the Shadow presses an arrow down onto the ground. Raven runs out of the room as quickly as possible, trying to find a safe place to battle the Shadow.

She stops in a hallway with multiple moving columns, hoping to be able to shift around without being discovered. She rests behind a column, the pattern of the columns' movements having been committed to memory from when she was a child. Checking the quiver, she curses under her breath. She only has three arrows left, and the Shadow probably has an unlimited source. "I have to somehow get to her quiver and then stop her."

Light footsteps alert her to the presence of the Shadow. "**WhEre arE yoU? It's NoT ThaT hArd to FinD yoU anD I dOn'T iNteNd oN hUmoRINg yOU mUCh LONgER.**" Hoping that this plan that just hit her works, she steps out in front of the Shadow. She nocks an arrow to her bow, taking aim at the Shadow. "**Do yoU hONEstLY pLAn tO hIT mE?**"

She ducks down, aiming at the feet of the Shadow. The arrow lands perfectly where the Shadow's feet would have been, but it jumps up. Without skipping a beat, Raven leaps to the side, rolls for a bit, and then shoots another arrow as the Shadow is distracted by the shot from the ground. The arrow hits the Shadow on the upper arm, ice instantly spreading down the arm and onto the neck. The weight from the ice forces the Shadow to descend and Raven is already behind the Shadow. She shoots the third and final arrow at the lower back of the Shadow, officially grounding it with only the right arm being able to be used. The Shadow struggles to move and Raven takes her chance, runs forward, and leaps over. As she flips over the grounded Shadow, she grabs two arrows out of the Shadow's quiver.

Landing in front of the Shadow, Raven stabs the right arm of the Shadow as it lets out a howl of pain. Taking two steps back, she aims the last arrow directly at the Shadow's chest. "Looks like I win," she boasts, releasing the arrow.

The moment the arrow hits the Shadow's chest, a bright light flashes in front of Raven, blinding her momentarily. She covers her eyes as the Shadow lets out another roar of pain. When the light fades away, Raven lowers her hand and looks around. The two of them had been transported back out of the temple and Teddie is hobbling towards them, ice on his left paw and right leg. "Miss! You're okay! You defeated the shadow too!"

"Teddie! Are you okay?" she asks, running over to look at his frozen parts.

"I'll be fine," he says as the ice shatters without him doing anything. "See? Because you defeated the Shadow, its powers are now null and I'm fine now."

"How'd she catch you?"

"She went straight for me and shot two arrows as my hand and leg. While I was on the ground, she landed in front of me and suddenly transformed into me. I'm sorry I couldn't warn you," Teddie dejectedly apologizes.

Raven places a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. I knew immediately that it wasn't you when that Teddie didn't tell me who it was you said could help me."

"Oh, miss…!" He starts bawling and Raven turns back to the Shadow, now kneeling on the ground. Ice had melted off its body, leaving a puddle around it. Teddie stops crying as Raven walks towards the Shadow.

She kneels down in front of the Shadow, placing the bow and quiver to the side. "I knew that you were a side of me from the start. You were the side of me that I hated. The side of me that I refused to accept, and I told myself that I would face it, no matter what you would say to me. But I was too caught up in the moment at the time…I'm sorry." Raven tentatively reaches out a hand to test the Shadow's reaction. When nothing happens, she envelops the Shadow in a hug. "You're me. And I'm you. That was true from the beginning and it was wrong of me to reject you like that."

The Shadow nods, disappearing in a bright, blue light. Raven stands up as the light transforms into her Persona, resembling very much like the being she had just defeated. The Persona clutches a silvery bow and silver arrows are held in a leather quiver on the back. She wears a battle breastplate and a blue skirt, tied with a belt. She wears greaves around her calves and sandals for her feet. Her blue-ish hair is tied in a braid and a gray wolf is by her side. A voice is heard.

_The strength of heart required to face oneself has been made manifest…_

The Persona disappears in a flash, a small card replacing it. It slowly descends into Raven's palm as the voice continues.

_Thou has faced thine other self. Thou has obtained the façade used to overcome life's hardships, the Persona _Artemis.

Raven lets the card fade away as she mutters under her breath. "Persona…huh? So Artemis is my Persona…" Exhaustion immediately hits her and she staggers, Teddie instantly by her side to support her.

"Once you face yourself, the effects of being over here for too long starts to pile onto you. I'll take you back to the entrance, miss, and then you can go home."

Raven lets out a shaky breath. "Thanks, Teddie."

Within a few minutes, the duo reaches the entrance and Raven is just about ready to collapse, black spots dancing around her vision. He taps his foot and the stack of TVs reappear and he helps her forward to the screen. "Here you go, miss, the way back to your home."

Raven places a hand through the screen before turning back to Teddie. "By the way, Teddie, my name…is Raven. Raven Roth." She extends her other hand to him. "Thanks for helping me out."

Teddie shakes her offered hand. "No problem, Miss Raven." He smiles as she allows the tugging from the TV to pull the rest of her in.

* * *

**Time: 0400 hours**

**Date: April 16, 2011**

**Location: Titans' Room, Amagi Inn**

Raven quietly slips back into the room, her entire body wracked with exhaustion. She curses when she realizes that her cloak is still there in the other world, stuck to the ground because of an ice arrow. But she can't help but smile, knowing that everything that had just happened was true. Granted, she almost died, but she had obtained a new power to help her friends.

Reflecting on what the Shadow had said, she turns to the Titans again. _"I promise to tell you everything. It was wrong of me to not tell you anything about me..."_

With that resolve in her mind, she looks over to the clock. Realizing that it's still the middle of the night, she quietly bends down and unties the rope attached to the drawer. She places it on the table and with that done, she stealthily slides into her futon.

Sleep greets her with open arms in an instant.

* * *

**Time: 0800 hours**

**Date: April 16, 2011**

**Location: Titans' Room, Amagi Inn**

"-ven…Wakey-wakey…" Raven tightens her eyelids, cursing whoever it is that thought it'd be a good idea to wake her up now. She turns away, ignoring the person. As a result, the person only jostles her more, trying to wake her up. "C'mon, Rae, can't be that hard to wake you up. You're normally awake before even me!"

With that sentence, she discerns who it is trying to wake her up. Robin must be trying to get him killed. She swats Beast Boy's hand away as she pushes herself up reluctantly, her entire body stiff and sore as a result of the little adventure she had five hours ago. She glances at the clock in disbelief that it had only happened four hours ago. "Oh, hey, Sleeping Beauty's awake," Cyborg's witty comment causes her to turn towards him. "You okay, Rae?"

Raven places her head on her hand, closing her eyes momentarily. "I…I'll be fine."

"If you want, you can stay and Beast Boy can take your area."

"It's ok, Robin. I need to check something out anyways, so this'll take care of that as well."

"Don't push yourself too much though," Robin continues, concern on his face.

Starfire walks back into the room from the balcony. "Everyone has been moving around and students have entered the school," she reports.

"All right. Remember. Cyborg is gonna scout out the shopping district, Starfire will go to Junes, Raven Yasogami High School and the riverbank, I'll go to the police station, and Beast Boy will stay here to keep an eye on the inn."

"But I'll be bored here!"

"In case you didn't realize, there's a hot springs in the back. So you can go there and relax for a while," Raven reminds him. She frowns, realizing that his dirty mind is planning to take a "peek" into the women's bath. "If you get in deep shit, we don't know you."

Beast Boy instantly slumps, sad at the thought of being caught with his hand in the metaphoric cookie jar. "Fine."

"I'll head out first," Robin offers. "If we all go at the same time, reporters are bound to jump us and we'd never get anywhere."

"Why not just disguise ourselves like yesterday? We don't have to worry about a green dog this time, after all," Raven suggests, glancing briefly at the guilty green boy.

"I'm down for that. It'd be a lot easier for us to sneak out that way since they don't know who we are if we're not in our outfits," Cyborg agrees, slamming his fists together and transforming into Stone. Like the last time he had transformed to show the Titans his new little toy, Stone is wearing a simple white muscle tank with blue shorts. Plain white sneakers cover his feet and Cyborg looks at his body with a forlorn look. Without having told the Titans where he thought of the name, he had devised up his cover story as a wannabe wrestler named Victor Stone who came here to see if anyone can help him improve.

"You okay?" Raven asks, placing a hand on his shoulder. After her little escapade in the TV world, she can tell that even her own teammates have hidden sides and that escapade, coupled with her empathy, tells her that Cyborg misses his own skin.

"I'm all right," Cyborg reassures her with a smile. Raven looks at Cyborg, resisting the urge to act like Cyborg's potential shadow. He picks up a plain, white hoodie to keep warm should it rain later.

Starfire moves behind a folding screen, her disguise having been placed there already. She walks out within two minutes, now wearing a new outfit. She has a short, purple tank top with a pair of maroon-colored jeans and boots. She stands in front of a mirror and slides a headband onto her hair. Her gauntlets are gone, leather gloves replacing it. Robin had offered her colored contacts, but she was unable to figure out how to put them on right. Hopefully, no one realizes who she is. Starfire's cover story is a tourist named Kory Anders that wanted to travel around the world with her friends and boyfriend, which is Robin.

Raven simply dons a blue, flak jacket over her leotard and pulls on a pair of jeans, keeping her blue boots. She pulls out the pair of Oakley sunglasses that Robin had given her to borrow. Raven's story is that she's a paintball fanatic and she is searching for a team while travelling with her friends. Luckily, no one has yet to ask her for her paintball gun. She had adopted the name Rachel to avoid being discovered.

Robin goes behind the folding screen and walks back out within a minute, wearing his new outfit. He has a black hoodie over his uniform and dark blue jeans. He has a small, red messenger bag that contains his utility belt, gloves, and domino mask. To hide his secret identity, he sports a pair of Oakley sunglasses like Raven. He stands in front of the mirror, flattening his hair. His alias is Richard Grayson, knowing that Titans wouldn't know it's his real name either.

Beast Boy decides to wear the same outfit, considering how he's stuck in the inn until the Titans return. When he was disguised as a dog, which obviously failed, the Titans had taken to calling him Logan without realizing that it's his last name.

The four of them walk out, Beast Boy sitting on his futon. Starfire holds Robin's hand to continue their façade of a couple. Raven and Cyborg walk side-by-side, Raven's thoughts lingering on potential shadows of her teammates should they somehow enter the TV world. A sense of foreboding begins to tug at her mind, warning her to watch over her teammates should anything happen.

* * *

**Time: 0800 hours**

**Date: April 16, 2011**

**Location: Yasogami High School**

"…Is Yukiko still not here?" Chie's worried voice catches Yu's attention when he realizes that she's looking around in fear.

"Huh? Y-Yukiko-san? Uh…no? At least, I haven't seen her today," Yosuke answers.

"Oh man…What should I do…? Hey, is that stuff you were talking about for real? You know…all that about how people showing up on the Midnight Channel is related to that other world."

"Oh, we were just talking about that…We're thinking of checking it out lat-"

Chie interrupts, "The person on TV yesterday…I think it was Yukiko." That gets their attention. "That kimono looked like the one she wears at the inn, and she wore it during that interview a few days ago too. I got worried so I emailed her last night, but she hasn't responded…I called her earlier in the evening though, and she said she'd be at school today…I-I…" She starts shaking.

"Calm down," Yosuke says. "We get the picture. And you still haven't heard from her?"

"No…" Yu sums up the information he and Yosuke had gathered the day before as Chie begins to worry even more. "What's that supposed to mean? Wait, are you saying…Yukiko was thrown in there?!"

"We don't know yet for sure," Yosuke placates. "We should check to see if she's safe first. Give her another call." Chie nods, pulling out her green phone and rapidly typing in Yukiko's number.

After a couple rings, she hangs up, clutching the phone tightly to her chest. "No good…Her voicemail picked up…Sh-she's not answering!"

Yosuke cups his chin with his hand. "Are you serious…? Then is Yukiko-san inside that place…?"

Trying to calm herself down, she scolds Yosuke. "S-stop it! Something must've come up, like an errand or something…" The trio stops for a moment and mulls things over before Chie looks back up with an idea. "Oh, or she might be helping at the inn. She wouldn't be able to answer her cell if that's it…"

"Yeah, but would she skip school for that?"

"W-well, I'll give the inn a call…Umm…I've got the number here somewhere…" she mutters to herself as she scrolls down the list. She finds it and presses the "Call" button. "Come on, Yukiko…Pick up…" she pleads. "Oh, is this Yukiko?" She turns to the boys. "Thank god, she's there!" She listens to Yukiko. "Uh-huh. Uh-huh…I see…Oh, nah. It was nothing, ahaha…I'll email you again later…" She visibly relaxes, hangs up, and puts the phone away, letting out a relieved sigh. "She was over at the inn. She said they had a big group reservation and she had to help out. Yeah…Now that I think about it, this has happened before, too. At least once a year. She said she'll be at the inn tomorrow, too." Yu and Yosuke let out simultaneous sighs of relief before Chie rounds onto Yosuke. "Oh, for crying out loud, Yosuke! You got me worried over nothing! She was totally fine! And you were all, 'Is Yukiko-san inside that place?' Hmph."

"S-sorry…" he apologizes. "But there is a reason we thought that."

"Oh yeah? What?"

"Well, we thought people show up on the Midnight Channel because they're already over in that world. I mean, it makes sense, right? People show up on TV because they're inside the TV…But Yukiko-san's still here, in our world. We might want to see what this is about. Alright, let's meet up at Junes after school," Yosuke decides. Both Chie and Yu agree as the bell rings to begin class.

Unbeknownst to the students, a figure stands outside of the school, her violet eyes looking at the various windows of the school. The gate is closed, preventing her from entering, however. Raven decides to wait until the school ends before she can do anything.

Leaning against a tree, she hides under her makeshift cover from the rain. At least her powers work here so she doesn't get wet.

* * *

**Time: 1500 hours**

**Date: April 16, 2011**

**Location: Yasogami High School**

Raven blinks, not realizing how long she had been meditating. Nothing had happened so she left for the riverbank with no signs to show her who the culprit could be. Reluctantly, she walks back to the school. On her way back, she had nearly been run over by a green truck and she curses the driver as he drives away. Thinking back on it, when she had a glimpse of the driver, she couldn't help but wonder why he looked so damn familiar.

The bell rings as Raven notices movement throughout the school. Within five minutes, the silver-haired teen and his friends are out of the school. Raven relocates, hiding behind the tree to avoid detection. The three of them have resolved faces, as if they know exactly what they plan to do. She pulls out her communicator as she follows the three. She had studied the map for a while earlier and as the trio passes by the riverbank, she discovers that they intend to head over to Junes.

"Starfire, you still by Junes?" she speaks into the communicator. Starfire's face appears on the small, round screen, a purple scarf now around her neck and a jacket can be seen. "Where'd you-never mind. Are you in Junes?"

"Yes, I am currently looking around for mustard. This store seems to have everything we would need, but it is much too large. I have gotten lost so many times for the past few hours. Did you need something, friend Raven?"

"The two students that we saw in Dojima's file yesterday are heading to Junes with a girl. I don't know what for, but I have a hunch that they're the ones we should be keeping an eye on. Especially since two of them was in a file that concerns murders." Raven continues following them, hiding behind whatever cover she could find. "I'm on my way there as we speak."

"Very well, I will keep an eye out for them. Should we call the others?"

"Let Robin stay back at the station. He might find something important and I'll tell Cyborg."

"Should we not let Robin know, regardless?"

"You're right. I'll call Cyborg and you can call Robin." Starfire agrees and the two end the communications. Raven calls for Cyborg and the two exchange information.

"I didn't really see anything here, except for this green truck that almost ran me over. But other than that, it's been pretty boring considering the rain. I'll head over to Junes." He hangs up. The trio enter the store, Raven following closely behind. She glances sideways, seeing a tall teenager being led away by the police. He seems to be yelling something similar to "Get bent!" Raven disregards him, trying to not lose track of the three.

"Star, they're heading for the electronics department," Raven reports, after noticing the direction they are heading in.

"On my way."

Raven meets up with Starfire as they walk together to inspect a nearby television. "This one looks like the one at home, doesn't it?" Raven asks, striking up a fake conversation to avoid attention.

"Why, yes, do you think it would be an excellent replacement?" Starfire asks, going along with the conversation. Raven can't help but smile; Starfire's ability to join into false conversations have improved greatly.

"I think Richard would love it," Raven answers.

"Yo! Ya'll decided to be inspecting TVs without me?" Cyborg's voice yells across the aisle and Raven winces. But she then realizes that Cyborg's yelling is enough to not draw attention. If he had just simply walked to their side without that yelling, they would've been suspicious in an instant.

"Well, I thought you were still looking for someone to fight with," she retorts, crossing her hands over her chest.

"I found someone, and I _was_ about to talk to him, but then the cops led him away." As Cyborg talks to Starfire, Raven half listens to them and the conversation between the three students.

"How? By talking to that Teddie guy?" Raven's eyes widen underneath the sunglasses. Could one of them be the Sensei that Teddie seemed to revere?

"Yeah. Too bad there's so many customers around…I forgot there's a sale in the electronics department today…" the fawn-colored hair teen replies. Raven decides to call him headphones boy until she figures out his name. He seems to ponder over something before he whispers something to them. He moves to the left side of the TV, blocking the silver-haired boy from the customers on that side. "Try sticking our hand in and calling him over. I bet that bear's wandering around the entrance anyway." He turns to the girl. "Hey Chie, stand over there. Make a wall with me."

"A wall?" she asks, but nonetheless, she moves and blocks Raven's view of what's going on. Regardless of the wall, Raven can still hear the conversation. She sees the silver-haired boy recoil in pain from something as his friend asks if he's ok.

The girl hushes him. "Not so loud, you idiot! D-Dude, is that a bite mark? Are you okay?" The silver-haired boy mutters something unintelligible. "That's good…Sheesh, that stupid bear must've done it…Hey, you! We know you're in there!"

Out of the corner of her eye, she can see ripples on the screen. "Ooh ooh, is this a game?" Teddie asks from the other side.

"No, it's not a game! Can you sense anyone inside there right now?"

"Who's 'anyone'? I'm a lonely little bear like always," he answers dejectedly. "This land feels so bear-ren…" He chuckles and the girl scolds him. Raven ponders on Teddie's answer. Why didn't he tell them that he had encountered her.

"My nose is running as good as ever!" He defends himself. The girl seems to be pondering over something before turning back to the boys.

"I'm gonna go warn Yukiko anyway. Since she'll be busy this weekend helping out at the inn, I doubt she'd go anywhere alone, but still…" Raven turns back to Cyborg and Starfire. So the person on the screen last night _was_ Yukiko!

"Something wrong, Rachel?" Cyborg asks.

"I…I'm feeling unwell…I think I'll head back to the inn first to get some rest." Raven doubles over and Cyborg bends down to help her. She whispers into his ear, "Yukiko might be the next target. We should all head back. I'll go back first to avoid suspicion." Cyborg imperceptibly nods, helping her back up.

"You sure you can make it back on your own?"

"Yeah, just look for a TV for Richard. I'm sure he'll be able to discover a gift like that." With that, she turns away and walks past the three of them.

"Maybe we'll find out more on tonight's Midnight Channel," headphones boy suggests. "Cross your fingers that this is all just a misunderstanding…" She walks away from them, walking into the women's restroom. Checking to make sure no one is around, she teleports back to the entrance of the inn. She flies up to their room, knocking on the door leading onto the balcony. Beast Boy slides it open.

"Huh? You're back already, Raven?"

"Yukiko Amagi is most likely the next victim. I came back first to see if she's still here."

"She is. She just left actually."

Raven immediately narrows her eyes. "What was she doing here?"

"Oh, she came by to visit and to talk with you. But I told her that you were out so we talked for a bit. That's it!" he adds that last bit when Raven looks at him skeptically. "What makes you think she's the next one?"

"We were at Junes just now and there was a group of teenagers who think Yukiko is next. They mentioned the Midnight Channel and two of them were the ones in that file."

"I'll call Cy and let him know!"

"No, that won't be necessary. Cyborg and Starfire were with me at Junes when we heard the conversation. I'm pretty sure Robin will be back soon as well, considering how Starfire would want to tell him first. All we can do now is keep an eye on Yukiko without arousing suspicion."

Beast Boy chuckles. "Well I can be a fly on the wall," he offers, instantly morphing into a fruit fly.

Raven sighs, opening the door a bit. "Don't get swatted to death," she simply states as the small bug that is Beast Boy flies out of the room.

She sits down on top of her futon, deciding to meditate until the team returns.

* * *

_Meanwhile…_

Robin closes the file again, tossing the manila folder onto Dojima's desk. He pinches the bridge of his nose as he looks at the time. _"Only three…_" He had been here, staring at the file to try and find some new clues. His T-Comm jingles and he flips open the cover. "Starfire, report," he automatically commands.

"Raven discovered the next possible victim. Cyborg and I are heading back to the inn at this moment to keep an eye on Yukiko."

"I'll head back as well," he begins, standing up.

"Are you sure, Robin? Would it not be better for you to stay at the police station and possibly gain some more information?"

Robin can't help but smile. "I've been staring at the same document for the past five hours. I'd like a change of scenery, to be honest."

Before Starfire can reply, Dojima walks into the room with a cup of coffee in his hand. "Adachi and I plan to head to the first crime scene if you want to help us." Robin pauses, deciding on what to do. "Something wrong?" Robin is unsure on whether or not he should tell Dojima about Raven's theory on how Yukiko might be the next victim.

Sensing his hesitation, Starfire offers a solution. "Robin, we will be adequate without you and you might find something that can help Mr. Dojima at the crime scene. It would be best for you to go with him."

Robin inwardly thanks her. "All right, Robin out." He closes the communicator and turns to Dojima. "When do we head out?"

* * *

**Time: 2000 hours**

**Date: April 16, 2011**

**Location: First Crime Scene**

Ignoring the rain, Robin kneels down on the ground trying to find more clues. They had been working for the past few hours and Robin could sense the policemen's exhaustion. Dojima stands a few feet away with an umbrella over him. Adachi runs over to him, whispering to him to prevent Robin from hearing the conversation. As a result of his training, he can still hear everything they are saying.

"Looks like we've found all we're gonna find here. And we've still got nothing that points directly to a suspect…"

"We don't even know if this is a homicide," Dojima replies. Robin frowns at the ground. Funny, the files had said this was a homicide.

"Well, what else could it be? There's no way a body could end up like that by accident!" Adachi replies.

Dojima is unfazed by his outburst. "…I know." He turns away, looking at the police hanging around the car. "We haven't found the cause of death for the first vic, and now we've got a second one just like it…If this is a murder case, there's no doubt we're dealing with a single perp. But if that's true…what the hell is going on?"

"You know, I thought at first this all spun out of that love triangle," Adachi begins.

Dojima immediately debunks that theory. "No. That singer – Misuzu Hiiragi – has a solid alibi. She was performing overseas, and her phone records prove it. And remember, the only reason the scandal went public was because Hiiragi herself broke it to the media. No one would put themselves under suspicion that way if they had murder on their mind."

"Got a point there…"

"Same with Taro Namatame, her husband. No matter how much we shake him down, nothing links him to the murders. He's been working in the city for the past six months. Seems he was here recently because of the scandal, but he was swamped with work back home at the time of the incident. There are eyewitnesses and other evidence placing him at his office the night that Mayumi Yamano died. And we can't find anything that shows Yamano making contact with Namatame before or after her disappearance…"

Adachi nods in thought. "You hear Namatame's career has also been killed stone dead? He's been fired from his position as secretary. He's practically as much of a victim as the Yamano girl."

"Yeah, I agree…" Robin looks around, trying to see if he can find clues in a different location. His nose twitches and he sneezes, getting Dojima's attention. "Why don't you head back to the inn, Robin? We don't want you getting sick looking around here."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, just go ahead. We're about ready to wrap up things here, anyways." Reluctantly, Robin heads over to the other police car. "Hey, Yamaki, drive him back to Amagi Inn!"

"Yes sir!" The policeman salutes before sliding into the driver's seat. The drive to the inn is a silent one, the policeman too awestruck and Robin too distracted by the past few days. The police car passes by a green truck as it drives by them in the opposite direction. "That driver looked like Taro Namatame," the policeman comments, trying to strike up a conversation.

"Mm…" Robin absent-mindedly replies and the policeman decides to turn back to driving. The policeman parks in front of the inn, allowing Robin to walk into the inn without getting further wet. "Thanks for the ride."

"No problem." Robin notices the man's hesitation. "Uh, um…m-my son's a big fan of you and your team. I know th-this is a big hassle for you, but…" He pulls out a small piece of paper, a drawing of Robin on it. "He drew this picture of you and was hoping you'd-"

Robin takes the paper out of his hand and signs the bottom of the paper. He hands the paper back to the policeman with a smile. "I bet your son's gonna be real happy tonight."

"Th-thank you!"

"It's no big deal," Robin dismisses it with a smile. He closes the passenger door as a woman in a kimono runs out of the inn.

"Police! Please, help!"

The policeman instinctively steps out of the car, heedless of the rain. "What is it?"

"Did something happen?" Robin asks, taking in the woman's haggard face.

"M-my daughter! She's disappeared!"

"Your daughter? Who is your daughter, ma'am?" The policeman asks, pulling the walkie-talkie out and prepared to contact the rest of the police.

"My daughter is Yukiko! My daughter, Yukiko Amagi, has been kidnapped!"

* * *

**The word count is going to fluctuate constantly. I was planning to end it with Raven's return back from the TV world, but that would've been way too short. As a result, I couldn't find a perfect spot to end and I kept writing and writing until I hit this part. **

**Also, the Titans' Personas will all be based on Greek gods and goddesses. I know that some of them are probably used by previous Persona games, but some of them worked just too well. Raven's, however, was a shot (ha!) in the dark and I wasn't sure about which goddess she could have. If anyone has a better suggestion, please let me know ^^**

**I also have vague ideas about each of their Arcana, based on reading about the Shadows of the characters from Persona 4. If there's anyone that wants to help me entertain my theories, go ahead and PM me xD**

**Please review! :D**


	6. Why Didn't You Tell Us?

**School's pretty much over so I can hopefully update faster.**

* * *

**Time: 2200 hours**

**Date: April 16, 2011**

**Location: Titans' Room **

"How did she get kidnapped when you guys were here keeping an eye on her?" Robin interrogates them, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall. The Titans all look at one another, unsure of how to explain. They _had_ kept a careful eye on her. Even they are unsure how she had managed to slip by so easily.

"Not a single sign of anything suspicious showed up the entire time. We have no idea how it happened," Cyborg begins. After Robin and the policeman, Yamaki, had managed to calm down Mrs. Amagi, Yamaki called for additional policemen to help in investigating the kidnapping. According to all the employees, Yukiko was still there until around the time Robin had returned. She had suddenly disappeared, without anyone noticing her because it was too crowded.

"If she really did get kidnapped by the same person that killed Yamano and Konishi, then we'll know for sure at midnight. For now, we should help the police try and find some more clues," Robin decides. As the Titans leave the room, Robin can sense a change over Raven. Is it just him or does she seem more tired than before?

_A while later…_

The Titans all move to sit in front of the TV as the clock in their room chimes midnight. Sure enough, the TV flickers and the image is much clearer now. Yukiko is standing in front of the screen with a microphone held in her right hand as she smiles. "Good evening!" She is wearing a strapless pink dress with gloves that extend up to her upper arm.

"So this is what happens when they're in the TV…" Beast Boy mutters.

"Tonight, Princess Yukiko has a big surprise. I'm gonna go score myself a hot stud! Welcome to not a dream, not a hoax, Princess Yukiko's hunt for her Prince Charming! And I came prepared!" The camera pans to her lower body and then her chest. "I've got my lacy unmentionables on stacked from top to bottom! I'm out to catch a whole harem and the best of the lot is gonna be all mine!" She flashes an excited smile before turning away. "Well…here I go!" She runs towards a portal leading into a castle.

With that, the screen turns off, leaving all the Titans sitting there in mute silence. "That was…her, was it not?" Starfire asks.

"That was definitely Yukiko. But I don't think that's her," Raven ponders.

"What makes you say that?"

Raven hesitates, unsure if she should tell the Titans everything. Frowning, she remembers what she had sworn to herself after facing her Shadow. She would be honest with the Titans and she might as well start now. "I bet that what showed up just now was her Shadow, the side of Yukiko that she keeps hidden from everyone else. I think the Midnight Channel is a way for that hidden side to break away from its 'host' and display itself on the screen."

"How do you know all this?" Beast Boy asks.

Raven turns around, her back against the TV. She looks at each of her teammates in the eye before letting out a shaky breath. "I…I went into the TV last night." They stiffen, questions abound in their heads, but Raven pushes on. "I know I should have told you, but I needed to see if the victim, well we know that it's Yukiko now, was in the TV or not. None of you could access the other side so I tried to go in." She pulls out the rope from under the drawer. "I had originally tied this rope to the leg of the drawer and the other end was around my waist. But when I landed over in the TV world, the rope somehow snapped and I was pretty much stranded there."

"How did you even get back?" Robin asks.

"Teddie was there. I wanted to investigate the area, and around the time I entered a new location, I also ran into Teddie."

"A new location?" Cyborg pipes up.

"According to Teddie, these new locations in the TV world are created as a result of human thoughts," she explains, pointing a finger at her head. "That new location I discovered came from my mind."

"Was it…?" Starfire hesitantly asks, remembering the time she and Raven opened up to one another.

Raven nods. "It was a replica of my home…Azarath." Waves of sympathy flow out of her friends, but she forces herself to ignore it. "While there, I sensed someone and I ran into Teddie. He gave me a pair of glasses that somehow clears up the fog in the other world. I sensed another person and they attacked us. It turned out to be something that Teddie calls a Shadow, the hidden side of you. If you reject that hidden side, it'll transform and attack you. Even though my Shadow represented my repressed negative qualities, it still tried to kill me to take its place in the world. These Shadows are extremely dangerous if you don't fight back. They also fight using similar strategies as its original."

"How did you manage to defeat it?" Starfire asks, the boys too shocked to say a word.

"I was somehow given weapons, a bow and arrows, to fight back. However, the Shadow also had the same weaponry. Teddie and I separated to try to distract the Shadow and I ran into the Temple of Azarath. I explored it for a while before I ended up in front of my old room. I was pulled in by 'Teddie', but I managed to figure out that it was my Shadow. I barely escaped." She pauses, clenching her fists. "I thought of a plan and it somehow worked against the Shadow. When everything cleared out, Teddie told me that I had to admit and accept that the Shadow _is_ a part of me."

"So the Shadow returned to you?"

She nods. "The Shadow transformed again into the Greek goddess, Artemis. Teddie explained to me that when a Shadow is accepted, they return to you as something called a Persona. And that's pretty much what happened to me last night."

"Which explains all the bags under your eyes," Beast Boy comments.

"You noticed?"

"We all did, but we didn't want to push you. We had a feeling that you did something last night, but we couldn't figure out what. We're your friends, Raven; we've known each other for two years now. It'd be weird if we don't notice what's going on with you," Robin explains, with a smile.

Raven can't help but smile either. "Thanks, guys."

Beast Boy stifles a yawn. "So…what now?"

"We have to find a way to rescue Yukiko," Robin answers without skipping a beat.

"I'll go in."

"Are you sure? Considering what happened last time…"

"I have weapons and a Persona. I'm pretty sure I can beat whatever comes at us."

"Someone has to go with you, Raven. I don't want you to get hurt again."

"I'll go," Cyborg volunteers, all eyes shifting to him. "I'm pretty sure you can take someone into the other world. If I go, I'll be able to collect information and just figure out what that other world really is."

After a moment of debate, Robin finally concedes. "All right, but we'll do this tomorrow. If anything goes wrong, get out right away. I don't want you guys to get trapped in unfamiliar territory."

"Fair enough," Cyborg agrees with a shrug. With the issue resolved, the Titans all head to their futons. Each member is out in an instant except Raven. She just knows that something is bound to happen in the TV world…

* * *

_At that time…_

Yu stares at the TV for a moment when his phone starts buzzing. He picks it up after reading the caller ID: Yosuke. "H-Hey, did you see that?" Yosuke's excitement-filled voice can be heard. "That was Yukiko-san for sure! It looked like her…I mean, she even said her name! But didn't the stuff she was saying sound weird? And she looked like she was on some low-budget TV show…was it like this before, too? What's going on?"

"Try to contact Chie," Yu suggests.

"Y-you're right! Let's get her to contact Yukiko-san! Tomorrow's Sunday, so let's meet up at Junes first thing in the morning!"

"All right," Yu agrees, hanging up. He heads to his futon, sleep greeting him with open arms.

* * *

**Time: 0930 hours**

**Date: April 17, 2011**

**Location: Dojima Residence**

Yu walks down the stairs, noticing Nanako sitting alone in front of the TV. "Oh, good morning." Yu looks around, asking where Dojima is. "He left already. He said he's gonna be late." Yu is hesitant to leave Nanako home alone even though he did agree with Yosuke to meet up at Junes. Sensing his struggle, Nanako speaks up. "Are you going somewhere? I'll be fine by myself." She turns on the TV as a weather announcer sums up the week.

"-this weekend will be perfect for going out. As for next week's forecast…"

"Oh, the sun's gonna come out. I should do some laundry. Uh…weren't you going somewhere?" she asks him again. Deciding that it would be safe, Yu leaves for Junes.

_At Junes…_

Yu sits at the usual table as Yosuke walks towards him with both hands behind his back. "Sorry for the holdup. I found some stuff we can use in the closet at home," Yosuke reports with a grin. "Take a look at these!" He pulls out a katana in one hand and a nata in the other. "We've got our Personas, but a golf club's not that reliable of a weapon. So, which one strikes your fancy?"

"The katana," Yu answers.

"Ahh, you've got discerning taste. This is a Junes exclusive. The blade's fake, though…" he adds as a disclaimer. "As for me…Wait, maybe both would be good, too. K-Kinda like this?" He waves the weapons around to show off his skills to Yu. "Or like this? What about this?" As they continue their discussion, a patrolman notices them. He instantly radios fellow officers.

"Two suspicious young males found, one armed with multiple weapons. Requesting immediate backup." The policeman runs towards them as Yosuke hides the weapons behind his back.

"Huh? Ohhh crap, I mean…No….no no no no, this isn't what it looks like. We didn't steal it…" Yosuke begins. "Uh, I guess that's not what matters…A-anyways, we're not doing anything bad! We're just two ordinary kids who like weapons and…Ugh, that doesn't sound right either…" He lets out a nervous chuckle.

"Put the weapons down now! We'll listen to your story at the station," the patrolman orders. "Hands where I can see them, too! I said now!"

Panicked, Yosuke brings his hands forward to placate the officer. Unfortunately, the weapons are still in his hands. "B-But…this isn't…"

"Are you resisting an officer of the law? Y-You're under arrest!" More patrolmen appear and take the two of them in.

Luckily, at the police station, Dojima was able to clear them up. Outside the interrogation room, Dojima stares them down. "You didn't seem the type to pull a stupid stunt like this. You know what's been goin' on around town. We got men stationed everywhere. For god's sake…You're lucky I was around, or this would have ended up on your permanent record."

"We're sorry…"

At that moment, some detectives walk by, conversing about Yukiko. "Wait, so the one that disappeared is the Amagi girl?"

"Seems like it…But she's just a high schooler, you know. Could be that she decided to run away from home…"

Yosuke turns to Yu. "Hey…did he say Amagi? Then…she really is…"

"Hm? Who's what now?" Dojima asks, hearing their whispered conversation.

"Oh, uh, nothing…"

"I'm sure you've seen on the news that there's an investigation in progress...We're sensitive about certain things. You're free to go. But this better not happen again." They nod and Dojima leaves. On their way out, they almost run into Adachi.

"Whoa…pardon me." He recognizes Yu in an instant. "Huh? Aren't you the kid staying at Dojima-san's place?"

"Oh! Uh, can we ask you something?" Yosuke asks, taking a gamble that Adachi would know about the situation around Yukiko. Adachi turns to Yosuke. "It's about Yukiko-san…I mean, Yukiko Amagi of the Amagi Inn. Did something happen to her?"

"Huh? Oh, ummm…Am I allowed to say…?" Adachi mutters unsure. "Well, if you're friends with Ms. Amagi…Keep this between us, okay? We got a call from Ms. Amagi's parents yesterday evening saying they couldn't find her anywhere. Since it was the weekend, the workers at the inn were extremely busy, and no one saw Ms. Amagi around that time." He pauses, seeing their panic. "Oh, but that doesn't necessarily mean this is a case just yet! But, people have been turning up dead on foggy days…So we're really sensitive to stuff like this. By the way, did she say anything to you guys about maybe going through some hard times?" Adachi asks.

"Hard times?"

"Well, that announcer, Ms. Yamano, was staying at the Amagi Inn before the first murder. Seems Ms. Yamano had some harsh words for the manager about the staff's attitude towards guests. The stress of it caused the manager to collapse. And with Ms. Amagi being the manager's daughter…she must've felt pretty strongly about the incident, y'know." He pauses, a hunch beginning to form. "By the way, did Ms. Amagi ever hint that she might be leaving the house? 'Cause if not, there's been some theories floating around that she's laying low for some reason or another…Crap, I think I've gone too far. You didn't hear that, okay?" Adachi insists, slightly panicked.

"Adachi, what the hell are you chatting with civvies for?! And where's my coffee?!" Dojima's angered voice yells for Adachi, causing him to almost spill the coffee out of the cup in his hand.

"S-sorry! I got it right here!" As he heads to Dojima, he whispers to Yu and Yosuke. "Forget I said anything! Please!" With that, he speed-walks away and the teens move out to the entrance of the station.

"Hey…does that detective think that Yukiko-san-"

"There you are!" The boys see Chie. "Sheesh, what're you guys doing? I've been looking everywhere!"

"Uh, well, there was a slight misunderstanding…We'll tell you about it later. Anyways, something's up with Yukiko-san!"

"Huh? You know already? I kept calling her cell, but she didn't pick up…So I went to her house, and it turns out Yukiko really did disappear!"

"I guess we've got no choice but to go now…But that aside, the cops are saying some weird stuff. They think Yukiko-san's hiding to 'lay low'…Apparently Yukiko-san's mom collapsed because that announcer lady bitched her out. They think that gives her a motive, and the fact that the announcer died right after makes her even more suspicious…"

"What? They think Yukiko did it? What the hell is wrong with them?" Chie yells, exasperated by the police's assumptions.

"Dude, don't snap at me! Yukiko's the victim here, dammit, not the suspect…"

"Look, we need to save her," Yu tells them, trying to calm them down.

"R-right! That's the important thing!"

"With the police totally on the wrong track, we've gotta handle it ourselves."

"I'm going too!" Chie demands. "And that's final! I'm going to save Yukiko no matter what!"

"Are you gonna be all right…?' Yosuke asks. "But man…they just confiscated our weapons. We can't go in empty-handed…"

"Weapons? I know just the place! C'mon, follow me!"

* * *

**Time: 1400 hours**

**Date: April 17, 2011**

**Location: Shopping District**

"You ok, Rae?" Cyborg asks, the duo still in disguise.

"Just a bit…shaken up…" They stop in front of a store called Daidara Metalworks. A Bushido outfit stands guard at the entrance and the two Titans stare at one another for a moment. "Might as well get some weapons for you."

"What? I'll be just fine with my sonic cannon," Cyborg argues, but Raven is shaking her head.

"We have no idea how the other world is going to affect your abilities. When I fell in the first time, I had no powers. I was lucky to escape the first time when we were still at the tower. It'd be a good idea to get you weapons in case. Better safe than sorry," she reminds him. Cyborg concedes her point as she walks into the store. "Plus, I should upgrade my weapons too if this store has it."

They walk in, seeing Yu and his friends. Luckily, they are in their disguises so the three shouldn't be able to recognize them. At the register, an old man with short orange auburn hair and dark orange eyes stare them down. His head is almost bald, with sideburns attaching to his mustache, and a large X-shaped scar over his face. He wears a white thick towel tied into a bow on his head, a white shirt with a brown obi, and white pants. The girl purchases some weapons and leaves, saying goodbye to her friends. On her way out, she runs into Cyborg and Raven.

"Oh, hi! Is this your first time here at this shop?"

"Yeah, I've looking for a paintball team to put together and I heard that this shop might sell some paintball guns. I was also kinda hoping that I'd find some potential teammates while I'm here. Vic here," she gestures at Cyborg, "was hoping this shop might have some…what was it?"

"Brawler's gloves," he answers concisely .

"Ah, well, I'm pretty sure old man Daidara would have some of those stuff. Although, I'm not sure about paintball guns. Oh, my name's Chie Satonaka, I'm a student at Yasogami High School. What's yours?"

"I'm Rachel Roth and he's Victor Stone. Pleased to meet you." Raven shakes hands with Chie, sensing strong waves of agitation and panic from her. "Are you all right?"

"Huh?"

"You seem rather…anxious about something."

"Whoa, are you a psychic or something?" Chie pauses, unsure of what to say next. "I-it's nothing!" She glances around. "I, uh, gotta go somewhere. I'll see you another time!" With that, Chie runs out of the shop. Raven looks over at the shop's collection of arrows, inspecting a bottle of poison placed next to the sets. Cyborg picks up a pair of black brawler's gloves, spikes on the knuckles of the gloves.

He slides them on, showing them to Raven. "How're these?"

"Looks pretty good on you," she answers. Raven picks up the bottle of poison, strongly debating over whether or not she would need it. Sighing, she places it to the side as she picks up a set of 3-bladed broad-heads, recalling how similar it looks to Artemis's arrows. She grabs steel shafts, testing to see how the broad-heads fit on the shafts. She decides to keep the feather fletchings on her arrows. Done with selecting her weaponry, she walks to the register, deciding against a new bow for now. She places the items on the counter as Cyborg sets his gloves down as well. Yu and his friend walk past them, and Raven steals a glance at the weapons clutched in their hands.

"They're probably gonna try and rescue that Yukiko girl too. Should we go with them?"

"No, it's too risky. They might think we're the ones responsible. For now, we'll enter from the inn's TV and we'll go from there." Raven pays the man for the weapons and the two walk out, Raven teleporting them back to the inn.

Only Beast Boy is still in the room, out like a light. Robin had gone to the police station to try to glean more information on what could have happened to Yukiko. Starfire is currently exploring the inn and interrogating the employees, hoping that someone would remember what happened to Yukiko. Raven pulls out her quiver from her drawer, replacing each arrow with her new set. A small pouch that she hadn't seen earlier is on the bottom part of the quiver and she places the bottle of poison in there.

"Someone's ready and rarin' to go," Cyborg teases her, pulling off his ring. Raven takes his gloves, and places it in the pouch atop the bottle of poison. She slides the quiver onto her shoulder under her hood, repositioning her cape so she would be able to reach the arrows. She pulls out the blue bow, checking the string to make sure it's still in relatively decent condition. Ready, she places her hand on the screen as she begins to slide in, Cyborg holding onto her cape. The duo successfully enters the TV.

* * *

**Time: 1500 hours**

**Date: April 17, 2011**

**Location: TV World**

Their entrances differ. Raven lands lightly, bending and kneeling on one knee as Cyborg lands and stumbles, falling over. She offers him a hand as she pulls on the pair of glasses that Teddie had given her. The fog clears and she tries to discern where they are.

"So this is the TV world…" Cyborg comments, trying to access some data. As he taps on the screen, he looks around. "Too bad I can't see a thing."

"Sorry, I didn't expect anyone else to come with me so I never asked Teddie to pass me one."

Raven takes a step forward, covering her eyes when bright lights shine on her. "What just happened?" Raven looks around before turning back to Cyborg. "Cyborg? What's wrong?"

Cyborg walks past Raven, in a daze. "Why…why are we here?"

"Where is here?" Raven looks around, confused. An entrance to a laboratory emerges in front of them, and Raven can tell that it has some relation to Cyborg. "Cyborg…what is that lab?"

Cyborg turns to Raven, a haunted look on his face. "It was where…my mom died and I became…this…" He gestures at his robotic parts, his human eye closed in anguish.

"Look, let's try to skirt around this place. I don't think it's a good idea to-Cyborg?" He walks slowly to the entrance of the lab as though he's hypnotized. The lab doors recognize him and slide open, ushering him in. Raven frowns, knowing exactly what's bound to happen. She charges in blindly, calling out for him. "Cyborg! It's not safe to-" Raven takes a step back as a shadow lunges at her. She ducks aside, pulling an arrow out of the quiver and shoots at it. "Where could he have gone in this short amount of time?"

Raven spends the rest of her time through this floor, running past white, metallic walls and ignoring each door. She sees stairs at the end of the hallway, but shadows block her way. Deciding to preserve her arrows, Raven tries to summon Artemis again. The card containing Artemis descends onto her palm and she shatters it by swinging her bow. "Persona!"

Artemis rises behind Raven, her wolf howling. Raven simply points at the shadows and Artemis releases a volley of arrows, clearing the shadows. With the path clear, Raven descends the stairs. Reaching the new room, she hears a female voice. "Wow, amazing, honey! Only your first year and you're already on Varsity! Congratulations!"

Raven recalls what Cyborg had said about his mother. She frowns, continuing through the floor. As more shadows appear to blockade her, she summons Artemis again. "I don't have time to be toying around with you damn shadows! My friend is in trouble!" Artemis attacks again, but her ice-based attacks are null on these particular shadows. Raven tucks her bow away, pulling out Cyborg's gloves. She lets out a small gasp, noticing some sort of liquid dripping down the spikes. She holds the gloves in one hand and inspects the pouch. A bit of the poison had spilled out and had dripped onto the spikes.

Regardless, she pulls the gloves on. She gestures at the shadows, taunting them to come at her. As they slither towards her, she leaps up and smashes her fists into two shadows. Pushing herself up with the momentum, she flips over and lands in front of the shadows. Charging forward, she punches her way through, her motivation to rescue Cyborg able to keep her going.

She barrels down onto the next lower floor as she hears more voices. "Victor! No!" A pause. A new voice, now male. "Oh gods no…Victor…Elinore…"

"I-it hurts…It hurts so bad…" Cyborg's voice says.

Raven grimaces, realizing that she's getting a peek of what Cyborg had gone through. "Hang in there, Cyborg…I'm on the way." She manages to pass this floor without a problem, and as she descends onto the next floor, more voices.

"Victor, I-"

"Damn it, old man. Why didn't you just let me die? Why couldn't you just leave me to die?!" The hate and resentment from those words cause Raven to stagger.

"Cyborg…Why didn't you tell us about any of this?" Raven asks, worry beginning to creep in.

She encounters a larger mass of shadows and she desperately opens the door into a dark room. She stops when she walks in, seeing a TV flickering scenes of something. She tentatively steps forward, standing in front of the screen. A reporter stands in front of the laboratory with headlines blazing across the screen: _TRAGEDY AT S.T.A.R. LABS._

A newspaper lies on the ground in front of the TV, a similar headline across the front page. Raven bends down and picks it up, the glow from the screen enough to illuminate it. There is a picture of a man and a woman, most likely Cyborg's parents, and a picture of him in a football uniform. The caption says: _(photo on the left) Elinore and Silas Stone stand in front of S.T.A.R. Labs, ready to begin another day at work. Elinore Stone was killed yesterday due to unknown circumstances. (photo on the right) Victor Stone poses for an individual photo after his first season on the football team. He is the son of Elinore and Silas Stone, and he was in the lab at the time of the tragedy_.

She redirects her attention to the screen. "Currently, Victor Stone is recuperating inside the building. His father, Silas, says that he has a solution to Victor's current condition and has gone through with the plan."

Shaking her head in disgust, she exits the room with the newspaper clutched in her hands. The shadows had disappeared and Raven runs down the stairs before it's too late. "S-stay away from us! You're a monster!" The voice's tone of disgust and fear causes Raven to grimace.

"It's still me!" A pause. "It's still me…why doesn't anyone realize it? I'm still the same old Victor Stone. It's still me…"

"Cyborg…" Raven is suddenly blindsided and she crashes against the wall. She leans against the wall as the shadows appear. "I can't let you bastards stop me. My friend is in danger!" Her eyes suddenly glow and Artemis reappears without her having even summoned her. Artemis waves her bow in a sweeping arc, dark bindings tying up all the present shadows. They disappear in an instant. Raven, taking a brief respite, clutches her left shoulder, the side that had collided with the wall. "I can't stop now…I'm so close."

Artemis looks down at her, opening up her palm as a light envelops Raven. She instantly feels rejuvenated. "Was that…a healing spell?" Instead of answering, Artemis simply disappears. Raven looks down at the gloves, imagining what it would be like to be in Cyborg's place. Luckily, the stairs are much closer to her and she descends. Lights leading into a larger laboratory call to Raven, urging her to step in. The large doors stare down at her menacingly, but she ignores it. She looks down at the pad, trying to figure out the code to enter. She glances down at the newspaper, noticing a set of numbers: 257-494.

She types in the numbers in the exact order. A robotic voice speaks up, "W-E-L-C-O-M-E, V-I-C-T-O-R S-T-O-N-E." The doors slide open and Raven runs in, pulling her bow off her shoulder as well.

"Cyborg!" Her aforementioned friend barely reacts to her. Raven recoils when a pungent smell invades her senses. "What is that smell?" Cyborg steps forward to a glass window, his hand touching it. A scream can be heard inside the room.

"Forgive me, Victor, but this will hurt." The scream increases, raw pain attacking Raven. Refusing to let Cyborg continue watching the scene before him, she shoots arrows at the window, the ice spreading around the window.

The screaming ceases, only silence is present. Cyborg turns around to Raven. "Raven! What're you doing here?"

"I came to help you. You charged in without warning and I wasn't about to let you face this on your own." She shows him the newspaper. "I read a bit of this and saw a news reel of what happened, but it didn't specify _what_ happened to _you_. It just said that your mother died and you were recuperating inside the lab."

Cyborg lets out a hollow chuckle. "Yeah…recuperating. Let's go with that."

"Cy, what happened? Every time I descended, I'd hear voices. Voices that spoke volumes to me about what happened to you. I thought you said you got into a car accident?"

"That was the cover story. Look, Rae, we should get outta here. I'll tell you the story la-"

"**LeAvInG sO SoOn?**" Chills run down Raven's spine as she realizes that the ice is melting. A hand bursts out of the ice, the figure clambering out of the room.

"Whoa. Who the hell are you?" Cyborg asks as the figure steps into view. His eye widens, realizing that the figure is him before the accident. "Ok, this ain't funny anymore. Who are you?"

Raven notices the gleaming yellow in the eyes, confirming it to be a shadow. Despite his initial shock, Cyborg still steps in front of Raven. "Cyborg, that-"

"Stay behind me, Rae. I don't know who this punk is, but he's got another thing comin' if he thinks he can imitate me."

The Shadow simply chuckles. "**YoU kNOw aS WelL aS I DO thAt I aM noT a CloNE.**"

"That's bull!"

"**WhY noT sTAy a wHIlE lONgeR? yOU gEt to SeE yOurseLf bE reBoRN.**"

"The hell are you talking about?"

"**hAve yoU foRGoTteN EvErythiNG? hOW yoU rEJecTed fAthEr wHeN yoU woKE up? hOw EveRYone, eVEn MArCY TuRnEd AwAY frOm yoU?**"

"How the hell do you know about that?" Cyborg asks, aggravated.

"**Aw, ArE yOu goNnA gO anD ruN hOmE to MamA? Oh wAIt, shE'S **_**dEaD**_**. WhY? BecAuse oF **_**YOU**_**.**"

Raven notices Cyborg's frame shaking. "That's not true…"

"**WhAt wAs tHaT? EvEn nOw, yoU fEAr reJEctIoN fRoM yOur oWn teAmMAtEs!**"

"Shut up!" Cyborg lashes out, but the Shadow continues, taking slow steps forward.

"**YoU cReAtEd tHOSe riNGs noT beCAUse yOU wANtEd tO InFIlTRate tHE H.I.V.E. AcADemy, buT sO yOU cAn haVE yOUr seCoNd chAncE aT hIgh SchOoL anD bEIng a NorMAl tEeNAgeR!**"

"What the hell are you talking about? That's total bullshit! I've never thought that!"

"**yOU KnoW it'S tRuE. WhY dO yOU coNTInuE tO dENy iT?**"

"Shut the hell up! Who are you? Who do you think you are, trying to act like me?"

"**yOu Don'T reaLIzE iT, dO yoU? I'm YoU.**"

"I asked who the hell you are. There's no way you can be me. Stop saying all of that bs with _my_ face. You're not me!" As soon as he utters those words, Raven shifts in front of him. "Raven?"

The Shadow laughs. "**AHAHAHA, THE POWER IS TREMENDOUS! WITH THIS, I CAN BECOME MY OWN SELF**." The Shadow's face contorts into a sinister grin and Raven notices a glint of light on the Shadow's fingers.

"Heads up!" she shoves Cyborg to the side as the Shadow slams his fists together, the dark aura around him also covering him.

"Whoa!" The dark aura washes out, hitting Cyborg and throwing him to the side. He crashes against the wall, out in an instant. The Shadow steps forward, hefting a large hammer. It reminds Raven of Cyborg's alias transformed into Stone. The Shadow slams the hammer down, sparks of fire erupting around it. A malicious grin is on its face.

"**I AM A SHADOW. THE TruE SeLF. WhAT? YoU IntENd TO PRoTeCT SUcH A GrOTeSqUE PerSOn? I'lL EnD YoU toO!**"

It leaps up, swinging the hammer around as fire envelops the Shadow. The Shadow falls towards Raven.

* * *

**Wash, rinse, repeat. XD I swear, I didn't mean to have it end similar to two chapters ago o3o**

**Please review!**


	7. Why Are We Doing This?

**No set date for when I will update, but I do make it a goal to update at least once a week. But in the near future, I will probably have to extend the waiting length to two weeks. I will try to write as much as possible before school starts again for me. And I may or may not have a friend or two edit for me in the near future. We'll see.**

**On with the story~**

* * *

**Time: Unknown**

**Date: April 17, 2011**

**Location: Yukiko's Castle**

Chie stands in the middle of the room, hearing the door creak open behind her. "Chie! Are you all right?" Yosuke's concerned voice can be heard as he runs in with Yu and Teddie. She doesn't respond, causing him to step forward. "Chie?"

"She said that red looks good on me…" Yukiko's voice reminisces from somewhere above them.

"Yukiko-san?"

"I hated my name…Yukiko…'Snow'…Snow is cold and it melts quickly…It's transient…worthless…But it's perfect for me. Apart from inheriting the inn, I'm worthless. Still, Chie told me that red looks good on me."

"Are these…Yukiko-san's inner thoughts?" Yosuke asks Teddie. "I remember hearing Saki-senpai's, too…"

"Yeah. This castle is probably here because of this Yukiko person," he answers.

"Yukiko…" Chie mutters as Yukiko continues on.

"Chie was the only one who gave my life meaning…She's bright and strong, and she can do anything. She has everything that I don't. Compared to Chie, I'm…I'm…Chie protects me…She looks after my worthless life. And I…I don't deserve any of it. Chie is so kind."

"Yukiko, I-I…" Chie stammers.

"'**ChiE iS sO kiNd,' hUh? WhAt a JokE.**"

The new voice throws Chie off and she rubs her eyes. "Wh-what?" Behind her, Yu, Yosuke, and Teddie shifts into defensive positions as a figure walks towards them, slowly becoming more solid.

"Oh man. Is that…?" Yosuke begins, Chie's Shadow standing face to face to Chie.

"It's just like Yosuke! And…" But Teddie stops himself. "She lost control over her suppressed self! Now it's a Shadow!"

The Shadow laughs, taunting Chie. "**Are wE tAlkInG aBout **_**ThAT**_** YukIkO? ShE SAyS I'm PRoTECtinG hEr? ShE sAys shE'S woRtHleSs! ThAT's hOW iT shOulD bE, rigHt?**"

"Wh-what're you saying?!" Chie asks in disbelief.

"**YuKiKo's SOOO goOD lOOkinG…SOOO fAIR-SkiNNed…SOOO fEmiNIne…ShE's thE oNe alL thE GuYS dROol over. WhEN YuKiKo lOoKEd aT mE WItH suCh jeAloUSy…MaN, diD I gEt a ChArGe oUT oF thAT. YuKiKo knOwS thE sCOrE. ShE cAn'T Do aNyThIng iF I'm nOT ArouND…I'm BEtTEr thAn hEr…MuCh, **_**mUch**_** beTter!**"

"No! I have never thought that!" Chie denies.

"Wh-what're we gonna do?" Yosuke asks worriedly.

"We need to protect Chie," Yu answers.

Teddie agrees, "We need to protect Chie-chan right now!"

They take a few steps forward, causing Chie to recoil in fear. "N-no, don't come near me! Don't look at me!"

"Chie, calm down!" Yosuke attempts.

"No…No, this isn't me!"

"W-wait, stupid! Don't say anything else like that!" Yosuke warns her.

But the Shadow chuckles, intent on goading her even more. "**ThAT's RighT. I'm thE oNE wHO cAn'T dO AnYThinG alOnE…I cAn'T wiN aS a GiRL, lEt alOnE aS a PerSOn…I'm pAthetiC. BuT YuKiKo…ShE dEPenDs oN mE…ThAt's wHy shE's mY FrIEnd…I'll nEveR lOosEn mY GrIP on HeR…ShE's toO iMpoRtAnt tO mE.**"

"No…That's not how I think of her…" Chie desperately tries to deny.

The Shadow pushes her more. "**So, yOu'Re jUSt gOnNa tURn yOur bAck aNd dENy Me AgAIn? BUT thIngS ArE dIfFeREnt nOw. WhEn thE tImE cOmeS…I'll bE thE oNE LefT stAndiNG. YoU woN't MiNd, riGHT? I'm StILl yoU!**"

"Shut up! You're…"

"Chie, no!" Yosuke interrupts, trying to stop her.

"You're not me!"

The Shadow laughs, as the aura rushes forward and attacks Chie. She is pushed back as the Shadow reappears, a towering figure in front of them. The Shadow, wearing a pointed yellow hood, sits atop three figures resembling close to Chie. The Shadow is wearing thigh-high yellow boots, gloves that reach to the upper arm and a simple bra. Its hair is long and flourishes around the group, moving of its own accord. The Shadow clutches a red, spiked whip.

"Chie!"

"I-it's coming! You have to use your powers to save Chie-chan!"

The Shadow cracks its whip. "**I am a shAdOw…ThE TrUE SelF…What do YoU guYS thINk yOU'rE DoiNG? TRyiNG to dEfenD thE 'rEal' mE? ThEN yOU're goNnA paY thE prICe!**"

"Shut up! Quit being such a pain!" Yosuke snaps back. "Chie…Just hang in there a little longer…"

"**HaH…ThInK yOu cAN StoP ME tHAt eASy?**"

* * *

_Meanwhile with Cyborg and Raven_…

Raven shoots an arrow at the raging fire rushing towards her, freezing it up. "**WhY do yOu ConTInUe to Help HiM? AreN't YoU afrAId oF hIM?**"

"He's my friend! Why would I be afraid of him?"

The Shadow laughs, swinging the hammer again. The fire rushes at Raven before she has time to react. The heat envelops her in a hug as she tries to endure it. But the flames refuse to desist and she desperately summons Artemis. Artemis emerges immediately, her eyes glowing. The fire is frozen as Raven rests on her knees for a moment, sweat pouring down her face. "**SToP foOlinG yOurSelF!**" Raven pulls an arrow out of the quiver, shooting it at the Shadow, who smashes it with his hammer. "**You'Ll havE to tRy hARdEr thAN thAT!**"

Artemis sends her wolf forward, its jaws clamping down on the hammer. The Shadow wrestles with the wolf for a moment and Raven, seeing the chance, pulls out another arrow. She and Artemis simultaneously release their arrows, hitting the Shadow in its shoulders. The Shadow growls, kicking the wolf away as the ice begins to spread on its body. It rips off the arrows before scowling at Raven. Fire emanating from its body melts the ice. "You may think that we reject Cyborg, but we don't! We accept him for who he is!" _"And he's helped me fit in when I didn't feel like I did…_" she remembers when they had first met one another.

"_Mind telling me why you're always by yourself?"_

"_You heard the kid, I don't exactly fit in."_

"_He's green, half of me is metal and she's from space. You fit in just fine."_

Raven tucks her bow onto her shoulder, lathering the spikes on the gloves in the poison again. She charges towards the Shadow. "I trust him! And he trusts me!"

The Shadow swings at Raven, but she simply dodges to the side. She leaps onto the hammer, pushing herself up more. With the hammer grounded, she delivers a right hook, followed by a jab. The Shadow staggers back as she bends down. Using her feet as springs, she finishes the Shadow off with an uppercut. The Shadow flies a few feet back, sliding to where it had entered. It grabs the hammer, spitting something out and wiping away at its jaw. "**NiCe mOveS. But Let'S seE HoW yoU DeaL wiTH thiS!**" The Shadow vanishes in a sea of flames, causing Raven to stiffen. She looks around, trying to figure out where the Shadow is.

The Shadow teleports behind her and before she can do anything, it rams into her. She rolls over herself, her bow skittering away. Artemis attempts to shoot at the Shadow, but it swings at the Persona. The fire weakens her, causing her to stagger back, also harming Raven in the process. Artemis is forced to retreat, leaving Raven alone and weak at the mercy of the Shadow. She reaches for her bow, but the Shadow stomps down on her hand. She lets out a pained cry. She tries to punch the Shadow with her other hand, but it simply grabs her hand. It bends down, the added weight being applied onto her arm. She lets out another moan of pain, the pain excruciating.

Her eyesight becomes blurry as the Shadow rears back, prepared to bring his hammer down on her.

* * *

**Time: 1630 hours**

**Date: April 17, 2011**

**Location: Titans Room**

Starfire walks back into the room, noticing Beast Boy standing under the awning and looking out at the rain. "Beast Boy?" Beast Boy turns around, aggravation and barely restrained panic concealed. "What is wrong?"

"I just…have this bad feeling. Like…we all shoulda gone, instead of just the two of them."

"Beast Boy, they are our friends, yes?" Starfire asks, walking towards him. He nods. "Then we must trust in our friends and believe that they can pull through."

Beast Boy doesn't respond, only looking out at the rain again. "It's just…" He sighs. "You're right. Gotta have faith in Cy and Raven." He stares at the raindrops. "It's raining pretty badly, isn't it, Star?"

"Hmm? Why, yes…But what is the-?" Beast Boy turns back to the room, closing it shut. He sits down in front of the TV, staring back at his reflection.

"_Come on guys, don't prove Star wrong._"

* * *

_With Cyborg and Raven…_

Raven narrowly maneuvers out of the way, the flames threatening to devour her. The Shadow kicks her in the abdomen and she coughs, feeling a rib begin to break. She coughs up blood as the Shadow raises the hammer up again. "**I wOn'T mISS aGAiN**."

A charging roar distracts the Shadow, causing it to turn in the direction. Cyborg barrels into the Shadow, knocking it aside. The hammer lands down in front of Cyborg's feet. He kneels down, scanning Raven. "Raven! Are you okay?"

Her breathing becomes haggard and she brings her right palm out, calling forth the Persona. She crushes it, whispers "Persona", and Artemis is summoned with a flash of light. Artemis, seemingly without any instructions, bathe both Titans in a cleansing light. Raven can feel her broken rib and wrist heal themselves, as the Shadow stands up. "Cy…"

"Sorry you had to fight that. It shoulda been my fight and my fight alone," Cyborg apologizes. He bends down, picking up the hammer.

"**yOu'Re gOnnA fiGht nOw?**"

Cyborg tests the hammer's weight, taking a few short experimental swings. "Try me," he taunts the Shadow.

The Shadow smirks, pounding its fists together as flames envelop his hand. The two charge with a battle roar, Cyborg swinging down on the Shadow, who blocks the attack with its fists. The wave of heat washes down on Raven, causing her to gasp for air. Artemis blocks Raven from the second wave, the cool air allowing her to breathe easier.

Cyborg swipes at the Shadow, who ducks downwards. With this new chance, he knees it in the chin, causing it to fly back. The Shadow lands on its back, but gets up instantly, wiping at its chin. They continue trading blows, Cyborg occasionally being knocked down. Raven manages to push herself up as she points at the Shadow. Artemis, understanding her intentions, closes her eyes briefly before opening them again, her eyes now glowing white. Frost covers her hands like gloves as she brings one hand back, wisps of cold air trailing behind. Three arrows form on the bow, all aimed directly for the Shadow.

Cyborg blocks the Shadow's fist with the shaft of the hammer before kneeing it in the gut. He delivers an elbow drop, pushing the Shadow down onto the ground. With the Shadow down, Artemis releases her arrows as they fly.

The arrows land onto the Shadow's arms and lower back as the ice spreads. Cyborg steps in front of his struggling Shadow and kicks it in the face. When the Shadow passes out, it reverts back to its normal state and the location disappears, transporting the Titans, Artemis, and the Shadow back to the entrance of the lab.

Cyborg, disregarding the Shadow, bends down to help Raven up. She stands up, clutching her healed wrist. "You all right?" Raven replies with a nod. "I'm sorry for making you have to fight that for me. It was wrong of me."

"It's okay, Cyborg."

"Did you know this was gonna happen?"

"Yes, that's why I didn't want you to go in here without me. How'd you even get all the way to that lab? You were only a few steps ahead of me."

"The minute I stepped in, the place kinda warped and I ended up at the bottom floor. I stayed there, listening and witnessing everything that happened to me before all of this."

"I'm sorry."

Cyborg shakes his head. "It was my fault for going in. Don't blame yourself, Raven." He places a comforting hand on her shoulder before turning back to the Shadow, whom is standing and staring at the two Titans. Raven steps back, allowing Artemis to return to Raven's soul, as Cyborg steps towards the Shadow.

The two stare at one another for a moment before Cyborg speaks up. "I never had a childhood. All I remember was being a test subject for my parents at S.T.A.R. Labs, and football was one of my few escapes from that reality. I'd always wanted something different. When this happened to me, I resented it. I wondered why it happened to me. I wanted to just die. I wanted to be a normal human being again. When I infiltrated H.I.V.E. Academy as Stone, I felt like a human again. Not some sort of half-metal 'monster' that a lot of people labelled me with. I'll admit it. I've always wanted to be a human again, but at the same time…" He smiles, looking straight in the eye of his Shadow. "…if it weren't for this body, I never would've met ya'll and become a hero. I rejected you, but I know now. You're me…and I'm you."

The Shadow nods, disappearing in a bright light. It fades away as a new being, Cyborg's Persona, appears. The Persona is a huge lump of a man with his shoulders at different heights and a huge, bulging, misshapen head and his leg in a steel brace, with a wild brown beard. His steely gaze fixates onto Cyborg as he picks up the large hammer on the ground.

_The strength of heart required to face oneself has been made manifest…_

The light around the Persona pulsates as it disappears, a card replacing him. The card slowly descends onto Cyborg's palm, the light enveloping his chest.

_Thou has faced thine other self. Thou has obtained the façade used to overcome life's hardships, the Persona _Hephaestus.

"Heh, so this is mine, huh? Pretty fitting," he mutters as the card fades away. His knees buckle as he begins to stumble forward. Raven is instantly by his side to help him from falling. "Thanks, Rae."

"No problem."

"Thanks for everything."

"Everything?"

"You stayed by to help me. You could've left me here to look for Yuk-"

"You're my friend, Cyborg. I'd be heartless if I didn't help you."

He smiles as she helps him away from the laboratory. On their way back to where Teddie had left the exit TVs, Raven notices movement in the opposite direction. "What's goin' on?"

"I think…Yu and his friends are coming back," she replies, looking around for a place to hide. "Damn, the TVs aren't here! Teddie must've hidden them temporarily."

"Shouldn't we just stay here? I think it'll be-"

"I…I'm feeling even worse than the last time I came in here…" a girl's voice can be heard as the quartet move closer to the Titans' location. Raven attempts to drag Cyborg away before they stumble. "My head feels like it's gonna split open…Are you guys okay?"

Raven pushes herself up before staggering. The battle must have taken a lot more of her energy than she had expected. Cyborg barely sits up before his arm gives out and he falls back down with a grunt. Sweat dripping down her face, Raven grits her teeth and pulls Cyborg towards her. They get a few feet before the girl speaks up again. "Whoa! What the-? This is awesome! It's like the fog doesn't exist!"

The two girls make eye contact and Chie continues staring at Raven as Yosuke scolds Teddie. "Why didn't you whip those out earlier if you had them?" Yosuke notices Chie's gaze. "What's the matter, Chie?"

He steps back in surprise when he sees Raven and Cyborg. "What the-how'd you-who are you?"

Raven simply stares at them all, noting how calm and collected Yu is. "Weren't you at Junes yesterday?" Chie asks, finding her voice.

"Maybe, maybe not."

"How'd you get in here?" Chie asks. "Wait a minute, aren't you Rachel?" Raven stares at her blankly. "It's me, Chie! We ran into each other at Daidara's store!"

Cyborg, at that moment, groans and tries to sit up. Raven places a hand on his shoulder, urging him to relax. "It's ok, Cyborg."

"Holy-are you a robot?!" Chie jumps towards him, completely forgetting about everything.

"Chie, calm the hell down!" Yosuke chides her. She turns around with a scowl. "We need to help them get outta here before their Shadows come to att-"

"Ms. Raven already beat her Shadow," Teddie speaks up, garnering the attention of the teenagers. He toddles forward and stands in front of Raven. "And I'm assuming your friend did as well."

"Wait, you know them, Teddie?" Yosuke questions the bear.

Teddie turns to Yosuke. "Why, of course! I met this young lady a while back when she stumbled into here!"

"And you didn't bother telling us?"

"I thought she was gonna never come back! But she came and then she beat her Shadow as well!"

"Look, Teddie, can you get the TVs out? My friend here just fought his Shadow and he's reacting violently to the surroundings," Raven comments, gesturing at Cyborg.

"Eh? But-"

"Just let them go," Yu speaks up. The attention shifts to him. "You trust her, right, Teddie?"

"Of course!"

"Hold up, Yu, how do we know they're not respons-"

"Saki Konishi." Those two words cause Yosuke to clamp his mouth shut and stare back at Raven. "And now Yukiko Amagi. They've been thrown into the TV, right? I was here when Saki was attacked by the shadows. I-"

Yosuke charges forward and grabs her cloak, pulling her up. "You bitch! Why didn't you do anything to save her?! She could still be here if you'd helped her!"

"Yosuke, calm down!"

"This is all your fault!"

"Yosuke!" Yu's punctuation of his name forces Yosuke to turn around.

"What, Yu? Don't you realize it? She's the one respons-"

"You know that's not true." Yosuke releases Raven in surprise, his partner's words piercing him. "We all know she isn't responsible for this and you're just taking your anger out on her when she doesn't deserve it. She just fought her friend's Shadow. You and I both know the toll one would feel."

"If it wasn't her…then who…"

"That's why we're here. We're here to figure it out." Yu fixes his gaze on Raven. "And I'm assuming that's why you're here too?"

"A friend of ours mentioned something called the Midnight Channel." Raven doesn't fail to notice the trio's eyes widening in surprise. "We tried it out later that night because it was raining and I discovered that I could go _into_ the TV. I tried it out the following morning and I accidentally fell in. While in here, I tried to escape and that was when the fog suddenly cleared and I ran into Saki Konishi." She notices Yosuke's shift in agitation. "I tried to help her, but my powers weren't working and I…I saw her being attacked by the shadows. Fear overwhelmed me and I ran for it; that was when I ran right into Teddie. He provided a way for me to escape and when I returned to our world, I told my friends that we need to go to Inaba."

"How'd you even travel here?"

"Yosuke, we can discuss that with her later. We need to get her friend out of her before something bad happens." Yu turns to Teddie. "Teddie, open up the TVs."

"You got it, Sensei!" Teddie taps his foot on the ground, the TVs appearing.

Raven staggers over to Cyborg's side, struggling to lift him up. Yu is instantly there to help her. The two of them slowly make their way to the TV, Yosuke's glare still pressuring Raven.

Yu pushes Cyborg through the TV, only ripples appearing on the screen to show that he was once there. Raven places her hand on the screen, her hand beginning to give way. "My friends and I are staying at the Amagi Inn if you want to look for me."

"Who should we ask for?"

Raven pauses before facing Yu. "Ask for Raven." With that, she falls through the TV.

* * *

**Time: 1700 hours**

**Date: April 17, 2011**

**Location: Titans' Room**

Beast Boy turns around, hearing tumbling noises behind him. Starfire is standing up in surprise, Cyborg at her feet. "Cyborg! You have returned!" Starfire kneels down, pulling Cyborg onto her shoulders. "Are you harmed?" However, Cyborg remains unresponsive. "Cyborg?"

At that moment, Raven falls through the TV, planting her hands on the ground as her feet fall out. "Raven!" Beast Boy exclaims, rushing over to his friend. He offers her a hand, which she accepts, and he pulls her up. She staggers, falling onto him. "Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine, but get Cyborg to his futon," she orders.

Starfire carries Cyborg over to his futon, knowing that it'd be best to ask questions later. "Dude, what happened?"

"We got sidetracked. While we were looking for Yukiko, the location shifted and we ended up in front of a laboratory. Cyborg went ahead, like it was urging him in."

"No way."

"Did Cyborg…encounter…?" Starfire begins, Raven responds with a nod.

"I helped him defeat the Shadow, but as it was with me, the fog from the TV world was like a hazard to his health. The moment he obtained his Persona, it was like all the energy rushed out of him and he collapsed. He and I slowly staggered back to the entrance where we ran into Teddie. He helped us escape," she explains, deciding to omit her encounter with Yu and his friends.

"Will he be okay?" Starfire asks, placing a hand on her unconscious friend's shoulder.

"I'm sure he'll be fine. The fight and what he faced in that world most likely has him exhausted."

"This is getting way too intense for us. We should all just go in at the same time and just rescue Yukiko," Beast Boy suggests. "I don't want any of us risking our lives anymore."

Raven stares at him in surprise. Since when did Beast Boy think about such thoughts? "What happened to enjoying the road tri-"

"We're not even doing that, Raven, and you know it! We're here of our own free will trying to solve some stupid murder when the police could do it themselves! It's not that hard to go into a freaking TV and check it out yourself! I don't get why you haven't told the cops anything!"

"I don't think you understand the situation, Beast Boy. The police here most likely won't believe us when we tell them."

"Why don't you just _show _it to them?"

"And then what? Point to Teddie and say _he's_ the killer? Teddie's only a resident in there; he has no idea what the cause is. Until we have further evidence as to who it is, we have to stay and keep an eye for anything suspicious."

"Do you even hear yourself, Raven? You're sounding more and more like Robin! I don't want anyone getting hurt! Cy is probably comatose right now, and it's all because we let him into that world without knowing anything!"

"Beast Boy…" Starfire begins, attempting to mediate between the two.

"Everything is fine now, isn't it? Both of us made it back alive and Cyborg _will_ be fine!"

"How can you be so confident about that? The two of you come back battered and bruised, and you expect Star and me to believe Cy's gonna be okay?"

Before Raven can reply, Robin opens the door to their room. "What is going on?" he asks, barely strained frustration in his voice.

"Nothing's going on. Just a lot of tense feelings going around."

"Doesn't feel like it. On my way up, I could hear you guys arguing," he retorts, crossing his arms over his chest. He stares at Raven and Beast Boy. "Look, we're a team. And we _should_ be working together, not arguing. Now, tell me what just happened. Why is Cyborg unconscious and why are you bleeding?" A pause. "Bleeding?"

Raven feels warm liquid trickling down her head and her left wrist. Her eyesight becomes hazy when suddenly, the world is upside down.

* * *

**Yeah I struggled really badly at this part…I think it was because I was unsure how the Investigation team would respond to encountering Cyborg and Raven. Also, I'm doing this story based on a walkthrough I use for P4G that allows Yu to get all the social links. So, Yukiko won't be rescued for a while, but fear not! I have ways to make it extend that long. Also, I have questions for you readers.**

**1. Do you want Raven to have social links, interacting with not just the Titans, but also the Investigation team and then some? She will meet Igor and Margaret regardless.**

**2. What do you think the Titans' Arcana are? I've been reading up on each Investigation member's reverse arcana, but I'm still unsure.**


End file.
